Connecting with Your Book's Audience
Some tips on how and where to connect with your audience.
Last week, I wrote about defining readers for your book, which you can read here:
Defining Readers for Your Book
By now, you all know that when I say I am taking a few days off from Substack, I do the complete opposite. This is the first of a three-part series for paid subscribers, covering defining your audience, engaging your audience, and retaining your audience. Some of the information I’m sharing was included in classes I offered in March, and some is new.
This week, we'll discuss connecting with readers. Remember, this is not about perfection; it’s about engagement. It's about authors actively seeking out readers on various platforms and fostering interactive and engaging relationships. I aim to give you a starting point, not a definitive answer.
How to find your reader community—hint: you must first know who they are!
Step 1: Use last week’s newsletter about defining your audience to create a perfect reader profile.
Step 2: Search social platforms using keywords from your book, whether fiction or nonfiction, to observe conversations.
Step 3: People to follow, groups to join.
**They don’t have to be book-related.**
Facebook: What is it good for?
You can create a Facebook group and build a community OR join one that suits you.
Comment on posts enough that you become a “Top Contributor” to the group. That means more people will see your comment. (Algorithm!)
Do not pitch to members of FB groups. Read the rules of each group before you join.
Some great examples of FB Pages are Binders Building Platforms, Gee Thanks Just Bought It!, Miami Herald Books (aka Readers With Attitudes), and Everything is Fine Podcast (this is Gen-X oriented).
Do not create a Facebook page with your book title. It won’t go anywhere. People want to connect with others, not a book title.
You probably don’t need an author Facebook page (yet).
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