Hey Buddy, Do you Want to Buy an Author?

By Keith Fisher

I’ve been amazed lately. I sit at the feet of great friends who are masters of the art of promotion and publicity.

Years ago, as the director of a Dutch oven society, I realized the value of shedding a good light on what we did in that organization. I learned about creativity as it relates to publicity. It was relatively easy to promise free samples, and expect people to come to an event.

Then, a Utah County Health Department official heard my interview on a local radio program. I’m still not sure of the motives, but they threatened to close down our cook off, and we would not be allowed to give free samples. Now, because of that incident, cook offs in Utah County, most times, don’t offer free samples.

Promotion got harder after that. Creativity became the watchword.

Later, I got serious about my writing career. I learned publishers rely on authors to promote themselves, and their writing. I already had an Internet presence and I knew how effective it was for the Dutch oven group. I knew how to approach shopkeepers and manufacturers. Having worked in sales for so long, I knew the value of a business card and promotional gifting.

I also, knew I hated sales, but I loved courting customers. I shifted gears and launched my author promotion campaign. I made a new website, business cards, and joined writers groups. Networking came natural to me. Then, I was invited to join the LDS Writer’s Blogck, and I could get my writing out there. Blogs were relatively new then. I could network by keeping up, and commenting on all the writer’s blogs, because they were few in numbers.

Then came Facebook, and other social networking sites. Josi Killpack talked about using launch parties as a tool to avoid the common book signing. I wrote an outdoor cooking blog for, Your LDS Neighborhood, and because book launch blog tours were becoming popular, I started another blog.

Soon there were hundreds of blogs. Networking became a nightmare. How was I going to keep up? Many of my friends were getting published. Launch parties became popular. Writer’s conferences, besides being an oasis in the desert of not being published, were a great source of networking with authors and publishers.

In my critique group, we talk about the new developments in publicity and bounce ideas off each other, but I sometimes feel like a stranger on Madison Avenue. Most of my writer friends have turned into advertising executives.

Now, book launches are becoming charity events. Great contest ideas and other publicity campaigns are inspiring. Every time I turn around, there is another, new way of drawing attention to a book. I don’t even try to keep up with the all the blogs. I comment on a few, but time will not permit my checking them all everyday.


I spend a lot of time going to launch parties and blogging about books. I write down all the great ideas I see, and file them away for when I launch my book. I work hard at networking, posting witty comments and advice on Facebook. I’m polishing my latest work in progress and working on a dozen more.

Like the day the County Health Department heard me on the radio, promotion has gotten harder. It is worth it, however, because it means the difference between selling 1, and 5,000 copies. If I tap into my creativity and do it right, I might just be a best seller.

Good luck with your writing—see you next week.

Blogging . . . It might be a Bigger World than You Think

By Keith Fisher

This blog is dedicated to the struggle of being published in the LDS market, and in the past, I’ve stuck to that format. Today, for a brief second, I beg your patience. I’ve been experiencing a bit of a dilemma and I need to talk about it. No, it’s probably not what you’re thinking, but it caused a debate within me and it’s time to put an end to it.

In the past, I’ve taken a tongue in cheek platform for talking about books, the mechanics of writing, and of getting published. I’ve tried to share my struggle in the hope it will benefit others who are trying to break into the exclusive fraternity of being a published author.

A few blogs ago, I wrote about a book that impressed me and I talked about how I’d like to write books that touch people's hearts. I wrote my blog in my usual way. The book was a romance, and as a man, I have a standing joke about the romance genre, when in fact I read as many romances as I do mysteries. I try to diversify my reading and get a feel for what’s out there.

After writing the blog, I fielded a comment by someone who writes romance. She demanded I tell the world the name of the book I’d just read. Now, as most of you know, I left the title out, because of my style of writing. It was my joke.

The comment, and what followed, gave me cause to think about what I write, and how I write it. At that time, I visited a blog that is supposed to be about writing. I found an article dedicated to an extreme political point of view. I commented, and expressed another, perhaps softer point.

Having piqued my interest, I went back to the blog, to see if my observation had stirred discussion. I was shocked to find my comment had been deleted. Now, if my opinion had been mean spirited, or abusive, I would understand. I wondered if I had offended.

All of this gave me cause to ponder my words. I wish I’d saved a copy of what I wrote. I’d like to analyze it. As it is, I’ve been contemplating the nature of what we do in these blogs.

As you might imagine, part of being a writer is reading. We must read, and we must read all the time. Another part, is promotion, a writer needs to get out there and promote his/herself long before being published. To this end, many websites and blogs about writing have been born, and as with the need to read, a writer should stay apprised.

Part of promotion is offering a piece of myself to the public. I would be foolish to attach my name to something volatile. If my intent is not clear, then I have shown myself in a poor light. At the same time, I need to realize that mine is not the only, or best, conclusion and if I’m going to write about politics or religion, I should expect differences of opinion. If I don’t want to deal with those differences, then I should turn off the allow comments section.

One final note, then I’m going to go back to writing about writing: I enjoyed my friend, G. Parker’s blog last week, and I whole-heartedly support my leaders, but I would like to add something to what our religious leaders have suggested.

If you’re going to blog about your beliefs in God and your views on political issues, you need to know you’re opinion will be attacked. Gird up your loins, you have entered a battlefield.

Good luck with your promoting and your writing—see you next week.