All authors, especially Independent Authors (Indie Authors), seek to promote their work for maximum exposure. They have mastered the craft of writing, but they are not confident in their marketing. Budgets for new writers are dismal; they do not lend themselves to aggressive advertising. Traditionally, Indie Authors rely on word-of mouth, which is still the most effective marketing tool, but it is agonizingly slow, and Reader Reviews which can also be slow to materialize.
Now think about Human Nature. People are visual creatures. They want to SEE the story.
Back in the day, an author like Charles Dickens paid illustrators to help bring his stories vividly to life. Illustrations were the Ads of the Day! Today, an author’s writing skills alone must create dramatic visual impact. The writer must hone his skills – a good thing – but he is deprived of the instant interest generated by evocative illustrations.
Now there is a free and easy way to appeal to human nature in your marketing. With simple computer strokes, you can embellish your marketing exposure using professionally designed, beautifully apt examples of your writing, made visual.
Memes create a dramatic visual impact. Memes reveal your plot and tell YOUR story. Memes can also garner interest in your writing style.
This is not my idea. I have seen it done by some mainstream professionals, but not by very many. This is still an under-utilized strategy and it is finding a most receptive audience. I am now creating Memes to market my writing, and it is proving to be much more effective than simply sharing cover photos and reviews of my books.
Now, for the exciting part! Meme Creation can be done free, and with no fear for copyright infringement on the gorgeous, funny, abstract, or dramatic photographs you feel best represent your story.
The First Step: Search out an online site that offers ROYALTY-FREE downloads of professional photos. My site of choice, offering a huge variety, is Pixabay, but there are others. Morgue File is also good.
The Second Step: Find an online site that offers FREE MEME (or Poster) creations. My site of choice is Big Huge Labs, but again, there are many to choose from. You can also create memes using PowerPoint, or most slide-show software.
The Third Step: This is the fun part. Not only do you get to choose the visual (photograph) to represent your story, and insert a favorite book quote, and insert the title and author of the book, but you can choose the border (if you have one) and text colors to best complement, or better yet – dramatize– the photo.
All that is left is to market, market, market. Wherever you display your work – Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google Plus, Book Clubs, Amazon – simply upload the Meme. It speaks for itself.
I can guarantee that this will garner interest in your writing more than simply sharing Reviews or Book Cover photos. The beauty of adding visuals to your work comes from the immediate interest and engagement of your audience. The Meme tells your story while also demonstrating your unique style.
Memes work! Interest in my book has risen dramatically, and sales are increasing. And the really cool part? It is a whole lot of fun!
Bio:
Joel R. Dennstedt – Author, Journalist, World Traveler – was born and raised in San Diego, California, and lived 15 years in Alaska: the setting for his book Orange Cappuccino and parts of Hermit – A Novella. In 2012, he and his brother Stephen, a professional wildlife photographer, embarked on a lifetime journey to travel the world. Learn more at his website www.joelrdennstedt.com or visit his Joel R. Dennstedt Facebook Page.
