3 Cool Giveaway Ideas for New Books @kayelleallen #MFRWauthor #amwriting

I recommend giving away something other than a book. If you give away what you're trying to sell, who's going to buy? NY publishers spend thousands of dollars giving away books on shows like Today, Good Morning America, Ellen, and so on. If you don't have that kind of budget, what can you do?

Some authors hold Rafflecopter contests, but not every reader will sign up for them (I don't like them and won't sign up for one) and some authors don't like them. Even if you do use it, what are you going to give away?

Deleted Scenes Mini Book

Did you cut some beloved scenes from your book? Put them together, write a brief explanation for the reason you cut it, and create a mini book. Even a few pages are fine. Format it well. Include: an image of your cover, the blurb for the book, buy links, links for your social media and newsletter.

Remember when including social media this way -- if you're on Twitter, this is not the place to use @kayelleallen -- clicking that does nothing. Use the full URL so it becomes an active link. http://twitter.com/kayelleallen Save the document as an rtf if you plan to share it online, or better yet, as a pdf.

Puzzle Booklets

The Last Vhalgenn

I've had success with giveaway puzzle books. I like Word Search puzzles myself, and discovered a site that lets me make and download them. http://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com/WordSearchSetupForm.asp After creating it (choose the text option), copy and paste it into your word processing program. Be sure to copy the solution page as well. I have a free app that lets me turn that into a pdf, and I can use the puzzle as a giveaway. I created a set of puzzles for each book, and combined them to make one big puzzle book. I also have pdf puzzles for each individual book.

Create an Inside Peek Booklet

Another thing I did for my book The Last Vhalgenn was create a booklet about the book itself. I included trivia about the story, the cover, pictures (make sure they are licensed and/or royalty free), an excerpt, and buy links. I also added my social media links. Click here to see the finished product. http://is.gd/vhalgenn_peek

I hope this has sparked a few ideas. I'd love to hear your creative solutions. Please post them in the comments.

---

Kayelle Allen is the founder of Marketing for Romance Writers. She is a multi-published, award-winning author, and the owner of The Author's Secret, an author support company. Her unstoppable heroes and heroines include contemporary characters, futuristic immortals, covert agents, and warriors who purr.

Homeworld http://kayelleallen.com

Unstoppable Heroes Blog http://kayelleallen.com/blog

Twitter http://twitter.com/kayelleallen

Facebook http://facebook.com/kayelleallen.author

The Author's Secret https://theauthorssecret.com

MFRW September Newsletter

The Business of Writing: When should I edit?

Writing is a lonely business and there are times when we are our own worst enemy. How many times have you been working on your rough draft and found yourself searching for the right word? I have one question, Why?

When writing that rough draft you shouldn’t be worrying about the perfect word. Your goal is to get words on the paper. That’s it. When you go back to polish/edit your WIP is when you look at the words to see if they convey what you want them to.

Writing Tip: 
Don’t sweat the small stuff – don’t edit while doing that rough draft. Who cares if you use the same word twenty times on a page. That is something you can fix later. Just write. Let the passion take you over.

Bio: Writing for Barbara Donlon Bradley  started innocently enough, like most she kept diaries, journals, and wrote an occasional letter but she also had a vivid imagination and wrote scenes and short stories adding characters to her favorite shows and comic books. As time went on she found the passion for writing to be a strong drive for her. Humor is also very strong in her life. No matter how hard she tries to write something deep and dark, it will never happen. That humor bleeds into her writing. Since she can’t beat it she has learned to use it to her advantage. Now she lives in Tidewater Virginia with two cats, one mother in law – whose 87 now, her husband and son.

Author Sites:

Website: http://www.barbaradonlonbradley.com/

Publisher: http://www.phaze.com/author.php?author=21

Blog: http://barbaradonlonbradley.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Barbara-Donlon-Bradley/118673448173249

Twitter: https://twitter.com/barbbradley

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/barbaradbradley/

#MFRWauthor Monthly Quote - August 2014

"Do not let the fact that things are not made for you, that conditions are not as they should be, stop you. Go on anyway. Everything depends on those who go on anyway."
-Robert Henri





Emerald
Emerald is an erotic fiction author whose short stories have been featured in anthologies published by Cleis Press, Mischief, and Logical-Lust. She serves as an assistant newsletter editor and Facebook group moderator for Marketing for Romance Writers (MFRW), and she selects and posts the monthly inspirational quote on the MFRW Marketing Blog. Find out more about her at her website, The Green Light District.

What Authors Should Blog About. #MFRWorg talks Blog Content.

So you have a blog but don't know how to fill your days. That seems to be the most difficult obstacle for most authors as they begin their blog. First, know that you do not have to blog every day. On average, writers blog three times a week. Second, remember to participate in memes - I mentioned these in one of my last Blogging Posts. And most importantly, keep your blog true to you and your brand. No two blogs should be the same.

1. Share updates on your books.
2. Serialize your writing by putting out a few chapters of a "free read" monthly.
3. Share interesting information on your research.
4. Provide character summaries.
5. Host your characters for guest posts.
6. Share inspiring or funny observations.
7. Create a personal column to give readers insight into you as a person. For example, I write "Queen of my Kingdom" monthly about my family.
8. Announce personal appearance, book signings and conferences.
9. Share books you've enjoyed reading... or movies, if you're a movie buff.
10. Host other authors in your genre. Make these more than promos. Perhaps a theme authors can participate in. For example, I do BOOKSauthorsREAD and invite authors to be my guests.
11. Partner with other authors for a group blog if you don't want to manage your own.
12. Participate in memes.

This is just a short list. Help us make it longer... what do you blog about that might inspire other authors?

Keep Writing!

Paloma

Paloma Beck is a Romance Author living a life of contradiction... she's a happily married carpooling mom writing sexy romance. It's almost naughty! Paloma writes full-time and has three series in the works with others on the fringes. Her books span both the contemporary and paranormal romance genres.

Paloma serves as MFRW's Blog Director.