Book Buzz: Promoting Your Masterpiece
As an author, writing is a remarkable skill, but it won’t make sense until and unless you don’t know how to make it visible to your readers.
To make it happen, you need to create solid promotional planning with careful timing. It is where your ideal audience piques their interest and reads your book.
Keep in mind that the promotion process begins long before the actual launch, laying the basis for a successful release and continuing prominence in a market.
This article will tell you every step involved regarding “How Can I Promote My Book,” from finding the right publisher to creating curiosity among your audience right before launch, and much more.
Table of Contents
How Can I Find the Publisher of a Book?
Understanding the Publishing Process
Before we move on, first, let’s clarify what type of publishing is right for you. There are three types of publishing: traditional publishing, self-publishing, and hybrid publishing. Let’s discuss each of them:
Traditional Publishing
An established publishing house or a mainstream publisher will publish and distribute your book. You will provide a team of professionals who look after your book designs, its marketing/sales needs, and much more related to fulfill the publishing process.
Note that your manuscript will not be accepted right away when it comes to traditional publishing. For that, you need to hire an agent (or a publishing company).
Also, another factor that makes the process lengthy is the prolonged time the publishing house will take to approve your final draft. Mainstream publishers will create proper planning to rightfully promote books, which might even take years or more.
However, it comes with certain benefits; the author tolerates no financial risk in publishing and distributing the book. The publisher is entirely responsible to bear the component service cost (proofreading, editing, production, and marketing) as well as publishing and distribution cost. But the publisher will recover the amount from the book sales. Before publication, the author receives an advance from the publisher (or upfront cost) as well.
Note: There is a difference between a publishing company and a publishing house—a publishing house is a corporate entity, and a publishing company is a brand of that entity.
Self-Publishing
When an author decides to publish and distribute its copy by itself, it is referred to as self-publishing—sidestepping the traditional approach. Of course, certain platforms are used for book publishing and distribution. These platforms are digitally available in the form of Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) and IngramSpark, the major ones. We will discuss each of them later in this blog.
In self-publishing, you have to figure out everything on your own: How to market your book, how can I get it in stores, and how to make it look professional.
Hybrid Publishing
The publishing and distributing cost is shared between author and publisher in hybrid publishing. The authors pay the component service fees and the publisher publishes and distributes the book and bears its cost. A publisher won’t give the advance before the book is published. But an author gets a higher share of royalties from the book sales.
Researching Potential Publishers
Identify Your Book’s Genre
Your genre is what you are writing about. Are you a fictional writer or a non-fictional writer? Do you write about history, romance, or memoirs? Identify your genre. It is a starting point toward finding publishers that focus on the type of content you write.
For example, Penguin Random House is strongly focused on nonfiction publishing, while Harlequin’s focused genre is romance.
Check out publishers’ catalogs to learn what genre of books they publish. You can also check Publisher’s Marketplace site or trade publications like Publishers Weekly for more info.
Researching Publisher’s Reputation
Reputation is also mandatory for the trust factor. Publishers catalog also provides info regarding their publishing volume, reception of those published book gets, and how these publishers tackle the past author publishing process.
Through testimonials, social media and platforms such as QueryTracker, Absolute Write offer great insight of their client experiences.
You can also judge the reputation of the publisher by analyzing whether their published book receives an award or critical acclaim, which gives more credibility.
Finding the Right Fit
Also, take a view at their trading process, especially how they tackle finance. Choose the type of publishing you prefer— in case, you prefer advance before publication go for traditional publishing otherwise self-publishing is right for you. Or, if you want a higher royalty and less care about advance amount, then hybrid is also the desired choice.
Also, confirm how many channels your books will be distributed. Moreover, clarify to what extent your book will be advertised, such as book launch events, press releases, social media promotion, etc. At last, make sure a royalty percentage must be fair as per the industry standards.
How to Submit Your Manuscript to a Publisher?
Almost all publishers have certain submission formatting guidelines. Your preferred publishers might ask for the manuscript as per their guidelines regarding fonts, size, trim size, margins, and much more.
A query letter might also be needed before the full manuscript. You can pitch yourself through a good query letter. Some publishers will also request a book proposal, or sample chapters.
Be cautious when writing a query letter. Here is the process of writing a successful query letter:
– Begin with a simple greeting. Next, if you have won an award previously, mention it. Or, if this is your first time, start with a personal connection. If you don’t have an industry connection, there is no need to stress out. An alternative option is pitching your book with a title, book genre, and book word count.
– The way you want your book reader to be involved within the first few pages, your query letter should do the same thing with a strong “hook”— a brief description of your book should have an exciting idea, strong conflict, and a convincing question.
– After you have impressed the agent with a hook, it’s time to further attract them with a story synopsis. Your synopses should cover a plot, main characters, and the main conflict or question that weighs the story.
– At the end of your synopsis, you can mention a few comparable titles (comp titles) to demonstrate your awareness of the market. Mention a few good authors whose writing style resembles yours with a reference. You do this to convince the agent: “Ooh, love these novels.”
– Again, pitch yourself with some accomplishments as a writer you achieve. Any award you win, your qualifications, and any writing contest you win or attend any writing conferences. Also, mention what inspired you to write this book.
– Personalize your query letter to stand out. You can add references to the agent’s existing clients, wish lists, or something they’ve publicly said to prove you reached them with solid research. Last, you can end the letter with a formal salutation.
Alternatives to Traditional Publishers
If you are in a position where you can’t bear the heavy cost of hiring the publishing house or constant rejection, then self-publishing is the right path. Here, you will be your own boss with full ownership of your work. Take a look at two prominent self-publishing platforms:
– Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP): A popular self-publishing platform for both eBooks and print books. As an author, you can keep a large share of the royalties (up to 70% for eBooks). With KDP, you will have access to the global Amazon marketplace.
– IngramSpark: Another self-publishing platform with extensive global distribution of your eBooks or print books to retailers, libraries, and online stores.
For hybrid publishing, Greenleaf Book Group, She Writes Press, and BookBaby are some well-known names in the market.
Book Writing for Publication: From Concept to Completion
The first time is everyone’s difficult moment – writing is not free from this. As a writer, you will be blocked by many hurdles: lack of inspiration, depression, and a sense of failure are some of them. Now, the challenge is how to cope with them.
Start by setting small daily milestones. No matter if you are failing multiple times, keep the habit of trying. You need to create a routine of writing thirty minutes daily. Be consistent. Find a peaceful place with the right date and time you think is free for you. The key is to spend time where there are no distractions. Note: Break your writing process into smaller, manageable tasks to prevent feeling overwhelmed. For example:
- Month 1, 2,3, and 4: Write 5,000 words (set a daily word count goal of 500 words).
- Month 5: Complete the first draft of Chapters 1-5.
- Month 6: Finish the manuscript draft.
Choosing a Writing Process That Works
Each writer has its own way of writing. There is no universal approach. Still, there are two approaches that most well-known writers go for: outline vs. organic Writing.
In organic writing, you are free to write anything with no initial planning. The moment you start typing, the story keeps going until your mind keeps flowing with the ideas. You naturally create a plot and characters and start writing. This approach leads to unexpected discoveries in the plot.
On the other hand, in outline writing, you first need to create an outline. You first plan your plot from start to end, making sure that all dots are connected. Basically, you follow a structure to have a clear direction.
Editing Your Book
During your writing journey, you can also use certain writing tools such as Scrivener to manage documents and Grammarly to check surface-level errors such as spelling and grammar, although Grammarly is a good choice. Still, you need to re-check it by yourself. This is the first editing step.
Self-editing is good, but it is also challenging to see your own mistakes. Until and unless a new eye view won’t edit your draft, your editing won’t make sense.
In this regard, hiring a beta editor can make your book much stronger. Beta editors bring an objective eye, pointing out issues you might have overlooked, such as plot holes, pacing, or character development. Beta Editors can also make sure your manuscript adheres to publishing standards.
Book Formatting
Self-publishing platforms and publishing houses give a high value to book formatting. Keep in mind, to get your book published, your book needs to be rightfully formatted.
You can use certain automatic tools, such as Vellum and Scrivener if you are self-publishing. These tools give you a general idea of what type of formatting ePub and Kindle support. These platforms help ensure your book is formatted correctly for these eBook formats.
For perfect book formatting, trust professionals to ensure compatibility with eBook and print versions.
Moreover, hiring an expert is also a feasible approach. A professional book formatter will make sure your book interior appears to be professional-looking and as per the industry standards.
Book Cover Design
The design speaks more than words. Most readers prefer those books from the library shelves that have impressive covers. Therefore, selecting the right design is the most important thing. To make your cover stand out, go for a clean and simple design approach. Use easy-to-understand fonts and colors that match your novel theme (or in accordance with publishers’ guidelines) and use a simple layout. Apart from the title, don’t forget to mention the subtitle and any visual elements that tie into the theme/tone of your book.
A compelling cover can make all the difference. Check out our expert book cover design services for a professional touch.
How to Launch a Book?
When it comes to launching a book, the excitement is of another level. After all, now is the time to portray your real skill in front of the world. However, the book launching process is complex and needs careful planning and execution. Let’s discuss in detail the best way to advertise your book:
Pre-launch Phase
After deciding which type of publishing you choose, it is also necessary that you have your own platform to show your expertise for credibility and authority. A solid author platform in the form of a website or a social media page can be a pillar for your book success.
A professional website is the center of your existence as an author. It is where your funnel reader will be aware of you as a credible author. You can showcase your upcoming book, do its early endorsements, and allow access to book launch updates.
A book-specific website is also a right spot to add email-sign up forms. It allows your subscribers to get alerts about the new book notifications. You can build a solid email list by offering a giveaway such as chapter preview, or a mini eBook to encourage people to sign up.
Moreover, keeping yourself visible on social media platforms is also a decent tactic to publicize your book before launch as a part of self-marketing. Sharing your writing skills, updating book snippets and even giving insights on your personal writing journey on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook engages people and helps you get followers.
In case you are self-publishing, the right launch date is crucial. As you are managing your book advertising tasks by yourself, you need to pick a date early on. Now, work backward from there to set deadlines for each task. Keep in mind your chosen date doesn’t conflict with any big holidays.
Pre-Launch Marketing
Now, you need to create a buzz before launch. For that, you can host an in-house party with the right venue. You can use local café, bookstores, or hotel spaces as your venue. It can give your book strong media coverage, free publicity, and word-of-mouth marketing.
Another approach for your venue is setting something up for you in your society, university, or association (If you are affiliated with any of them).
If you are hosting online, pick one social media platform—Twitter is a feasible option that allows personal live-Tweeting with eReaders.
A short video teaser on your social media and website can also generate excitement for your book. The trailer should give viewers a taste of the plot, characters, and tone.
Moreover, connecting with bloggers and influencers can offer nice exposure to your book to the general public. Find bloggers and influencers who have an audience that fits your book’s niche. Through email outreach, with a free copy of your book, let them know why you believe your book will be liked by their audience.
On top of these, create a launch team which covers your early supporters such as friends, family, beta readers, or anyone who has shown interest in your work.
Book Launch Day Strategies
At your launch day, you need to be more active to maximize your book success. On your website and social media channels, host a virtual event for celebration in the form of countdowns, live Q&A, and giveaways.
In your launch day email campaign, offer exclusive bonuses for buying the book within the first 24-48 hours to your subscribers. Make sure to include a sneak peek or a quote to tempt your subscribers with a strong call to action.
Post-Launch Marketing
After your book is publicly available, you need to keep the motion in-action. For your Post-Launch Marketing, keep interacting with them through online communities, email newsletters and social media channels. Encourage readers to post reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, and book blogs.
You can also track the success of your book using Amazon Author Central, Google Analytics, and KDP Reports. This way, you can explore how your book is performing in different regions. From these sales insights, you can tweak your further marketing actions.
Post-Launch Events and Long-Term Marketing
For post-launch events and long-term marketing, you can execute the following strategies:
- With book signings and author events, both in-person and virtual, you can engage directly with readers and build a community.
- Partnering with bookstores and libraries or hosting online events can help reach a wider audience.
- Gather and use positive reviews on your website and promotional materials.
- Target international markets by making your book available in multiple languages.
- Create an audiobook version.
- Release special editions can also appeal to collectors and readers who prefer physical books.
Conclusion: Ongoing Promotion and the Author’s Journey
Once your book is released doesn’t mean your work is done—you need to keep making an effort in the journey of your “How Can I Promote My Book?”. Sometimes, you feel it won’t work the way you want, but that doesn’t mean you stop trying. You need to keep yourself and your book visible by constantly engaging with your audience for long-term success.
Patience and persistence are important to “promote a book” which takes time—the prize comes as you continue to build motion.
As you move on, think ahead to your next writing project—a new book or a new promotional campaign, keep planning your next step while fostering your current audience.
Lasting success will be your destiny when you keep yourself engaged with the right audience through different marketing strategies.
Additional Resources
Helpful Articles & Tools
- Top 10 Must-Read Mystery eBooks of 2025
- Fantasy eBooks vs. Physical Books: A Comparative Analysis
- Why ‘Atomic Habits’ Stands Out in Self-Help eBooks
Recommended Services
Ready to see how we’ve helped authors like you achieve their dreams? Check out our portfolio to explore successful projects and the impact we’ve made!