Advertising Fiction

Once upon a time, in a place not so far away, I used to spend eight hours a day writing, editing, proofing, and researching my books. I may have spent half an hour at most on email, probably because it was long distance on my dial-up. Ancient times, indeed.

This morning, I spent an hour establishing Twitter and Facebook accounts for a pseudonym I’m hoping to develop for a new type of urban fantasy book I’ve written. I commented on a blog I posted last night, and spent another half hour answering e-mail related to an author co-op for e-books I’m publishing. I had time to squeeze in a few hours of editing next January’s Sourcebook release, before researching this blog for the wenches. I’m researching blogs now. Later, I need to spend some time on the Kindle boards to promote my e-books, go to my main Facebook and Twitter pages to see what my readers are doing, scour the internet for images suitable for the next book, and talk to my webperson about a newsletter and an update on the homepage for my Merely Magic reissue. Oh, and I have to create a PDF file for a reviewer copy of an original e-book coming out in April.

  I figure by day’s end, I’ll have spent four hours on editing and eight on promotion. Just exactly when can I start writing again?

In the interest of curiosity and frustration, I researched advertising and promotion to see who started this insanity, but let’s face it, even the prostitutes in Ephesus advertised their wares by carving directions into stone. (can't find that photo but I dare say this one is Caesar's proclamation to some great achievement--a political ad!) But I’m blaming Benjamin Franklin for the first American advertising, and Pear Soap for the leap from plain text to the first case of branding. Argh, ptui.

According to Advertising Age , the first newspaper ad was in 1704 selling property on Long Island (I’m suspecting no Indians bought it).  In 1729, Benjamin Franklin began publishing the Pennsylvania Gazette and supporting it with the “new advertisements.” For quite some while after that, ads were simple paragraphs along the lines of Dr. Franklin will be at the corner of Sixth and Vine to sell his hair restorative on Tuesday.  Or Runaway slave, six feet tall, answers to Lou. Contact Joe Schmoe.  Medicine was a popular product and snake-oil salesmen were probably our first ad accounts, but there were no grandiose declarations or attempts to explain product, just the facts, ma’am. (image at http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/past/past.html)

But then Pear’s Soap came along. Andrew Pears was a barber in Soho at the end of the 18th century. He developed a line of cosmetics to help the wealthy disguise dark complexions or conceal skin marred by arsenic cosmetics and harsh soaps. He experimented until he developed a clear soap based on glycerine that became extremely popular because it was original and smelled like flowers. Back in those days, word of mouth sold more soap than he could manufacture. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pears_soap)

But as the business grew and imitations developed, his grandson’s son-in-law, Thomas Barratt, the ultimate snake-oil salesman, took over the company about the mid-19th century. He had French advertising coins manufactured, associated famous people with his “brand,” and used picture advertising of children that equated Pears soap with purity and innocence. His famous bubbles ad made advertising history (http://bubbles.org/html/history/bubhistory.htm). Under his direction, Pears became the first registered brand. (I still shudder when told I need to develop my brand—I’m not soap, thank you!) So maybe I should hate Thomas Barratt instead of Benjamin Franklin.

I understand the need for promotion and branding in this day and age of too much information. I know if I could just write “light, funny, Regency romps” I could develop an association in the reader’s mind. My misfortune is that while I enjoy Regency romps, I also want to write satirical fantasies and alien YAs and a whole host of unrelated material. And because in this economy, publishers rely on sales numbers to buy books, I can sell books a whole lot easier under my name than under any pseudonym—unless I mysteriously brand the pseudonym without having a book out. Jolly fun. So I either choose to write one type of book or find someone willing to take a risk helping me develop a new name. And a second name means twice the promotion. Double argh!

Do you buy by author name? By cover? Or do you just take any book someone hands you and happily enjoy a surprise?  How do you learn about the books you read?

Comments

[LouisaCornell]

I have a long list of authors that I buy automatically because I can count on them for a great read. The Word Wenches are ALL on that list, including the late, great Edith Layton.

When it comes to new authors I will always check out an eye-catching cover in the book store. I'll read the back, see who the recommendations come from (if there are any) and if all of those things look promising I will buy the book.

I also take recommendations from friends. And if anyone on the blogs I frequent recommends a book I will always do a little internet sleuthing and check it out.

I will always give a new author a book or two to hook me. Which is probably why my brothers are taking bets on when the floors of my house will finally give up and collapse. There are book shelves loaded in every room in my house. And I love it!

[Janice]

I'm a little bit like Louisa. I have a short list of authors who are autobuys and another list of authors who are "look it over first and if it looks OK buy it new and if it looks 'meh' get it from the swap club". Most of the ladies on WW are on the first list because, although nobody's 100% all the time, I know I can trust them not to waste my time or money.

I used to buy everything I could find and I never grieved if there was a certain percentage of duds among them, but I am pickier now. The price of books is a consideration, but it's more that none of us knows how many years we have left, so best not waste precious time on authors who don't reward it.

I learn about the new books I might want to buy from blogs like this, from online discussion groups, from bookstore visits, and from searching sites like amazon and B&N.

I don't pay much attention to review sites; I don't want spoilers and most of the time I haven't seen reviews which speak to the elements of a romance novel that might interest me - usually website reviews talk about the plot, how much sex is in it and whether the reviewer liked the sex, identified with the heroine, fell in lust with the hero, etc., when often what I want to know is whether the book is decently written or has been (for lack of a better expression) dumbed down.

I didn't use to be such a grinch and it's really rather a downer to be one, but I have been disappointed in the lack of literary quality so often lately that I don't like to take chances with my time anymore.

[Patricia Rice]

I don't think we're so very different in our opinions. We're experienced readers and our tastes reflect that. Maybe what I ought to be asking, since our audience here is internet savvy, is what blogs and reader lists we're frequenting for that all-elusive good read. And then refine the question by asking what plots/subjects/characters intrigue us enough to take a chance on a new-to-us author.
I'll admit to reading Dear Author and History Hoydens, and I enjoy the reader/library list RRA-L, but that's scarcely enough info to feed my greed. "G" Where else should I be looking?

[Brad Fallon]

I usually buy a book through an author's name, almost 98% of it and the rest by its cover. If someone handed me a book, it depends on the character of the person who handed it to me. If he/she is recommending it then I will definitely read it but if even it is recommended but that person has a poor taste in books then, leave it alone!:)

[LouisaCornell]

I read Dear Author, History Hoydens, Risky Regencies, Romance Bandits, The Season, The Goddess Blogs, Smart Bitches ( no wonder I can't finish my rewrites!) When I say read, I mean I check out what they are talking about and if it is a new author I will definitely check it out.

Oh, Monica Burns is having a great blog event of a different author every day and I have picked up some great possibilities for new authors there.

http://monicaburns.blogspot.com/

Another place I check out is onelondonone. Some great recommendations for romance (especially historical) and historical fiction, and research books as well.

I think the thing that makes me pick up a new author when I visit these blogs is something about the plot or characters that is unique or different. I can usually pick out from what is said whether the author is really speaking of a story they wrote from the heart or one they are just trying because someone told them it would sell.

[Susan/DC]

I read AAR and several of the other blogs and websites mentioned above. (Thank you to Louisa Cornell, as she mentioned a few I didn't know.) I can understand an author's frustration, as she is supposed to participate actively in the online world at the same time that publishers expect her to publish books on a much more condensed schedule than ever before. For example, I liked "The Wicked Wyckerly" a lot and am looking forward to the next in the Rebellious Sons series. But if Pat is spending so much time branding, then she is not spending that time writing. It may be that the Muse is kind and the writing and editing can get done in the same amount of time as before, but it must be very stressful, and it sounds as if the days are so full that something must give (sleep? exercise? non-work related fun? all of the above?).

[Patricia McLinn]

At last, a solution! Since Patricia Rice is now such an expert at advertising fiction ... she can advertise for me and I can get back to writing ;-)

[Patricia Rice]

I'm loving the new blogs I'm finding here and on comments from Facebook, thank you! I wish I had the energy Monica apparently has! I need to go over there and ask her how she does it. "G"

I can't give up sleep or I fall face forward into the keyboard at some point. Not pretty, I assure you. But working twelve hour days does force me to condense my fun into brief spurts away from the computer.

And winter keeps me from exercise. "G"

[Linda Banche]

I scout out new romance authors I might like to read on the "coming out" lists on Borders and Barnes and Noble. Then I go to the library. I'll take out anything that looks interesting and sample the beginning. If I like it, I'll buy other books by the author. If I don't, no money spent.

I never buy books based on cover or blurb. I may sometimes buy a book in a line I like. I generally like the regencies in Harlequin Historical.

With one exception, I never buy a new author's book based on reviews. The one time I bought based on a review, I HATED the book. Never again. Reviews are always partly the tastes of the reviewer. How many times have I found an Amazon review where one person gave the book 5 stars because of xxx, and the next reviewer gave it a 1 because of the same xxx?

And as much as I don't believe reviews, I review books, too. Your MERELY MAGIC is on my pile for March.

I mostly read blogs for the entertainment value. There are lots of great posts out there, and I find out about them from the yahoo loops. I don't like author interviews, although I hear they're very popular. About the only blog I read all the time is Word Wenches.

I've found a lot of authors I like with this try-before-I-buy method, including you, Pat. Unfortunately, sometimes after I put authors on my auto-buy list, I find I don't like their books any more. Their books have changed, and no longer work for me. Sad to say, a lot of my favorite authors have gone off auto-buy. I hope my library gets ebooks soon, so I can check out every new book before I sink my money into it.

As for pseudonyms, I heard that J. D. Robb's books didn't sell until people found out she was Nora Roberts.

[Helen]

Patrica
I have a long list of autobuy authors for me and I love trying debut authors and picking up books that I have heard a lot about on the blogs and around the net.

All I need now is more time to read LOL

Have Fun
Helen

[Patricia Rice]

I hear ya about needing more time to read. I just rec'd a juicy stack of chicklit and can't get to it until I finish reading the Rita contestants. And my TBR pile is accumulating in my Nook.

My library has ebooks but they only loan them out one at a time, and their supply is so small, it's easier for me to put a hold on print.

Interesting about reviews. I think you're right, Linda. Unless one knows the reviewers tastes are compatible with your own, rating a book is senseless. Knowing what the book is about to see if it's the type of story I like is far more helpful.

But finding those auto-buy authors is harder and harder. The market shifts too rapidly and they disappear unless the authors shift with the market. It's rough out there.

[theo]

I have a list of auto-buy authors too, but I have to say, sometimes, I take them off the list (not anyone here! ;o) ) because they either switch genre and instead of now writing in two, they abandon the first one completely and make such a radical change with the new, it's jarring. Especially when they change to a genre I don't particularly care for.

I listen to rec's by friends, I have about 80 blogs that come through on my google reader every day though there are only four or five blogs that are a must read for me. I skim the titles on the others to see if a review catches my eye.

But the way I find most of my books is really the old fashioned one. I go to the bookstore and stand in front of the shelves for the genres I read until a cover jumps out and screams "PICK ME UP!" Then I'll read the back blurb and if it sounds like something I might like, I'll buy it. I've found many a good author that way.

I'm just too visual and tactile to do it any other way I guess. I found one author that became an auto buy because of the paper they used when they printed the book.

[theo]

Hit the submit button too soon. I meant to finish that with...

The paper felt decadent and the back blurb gave me hope so I bought it. And it delivered.

The other reason I'll take an author off auto-buy is if they suddenly turn on the world they so meticulously created and now throw things in to fit the series rather than keeping the series true to the original vision. If they have to suddenly change everything so they're contradicting everything they've built, they really should start a new series. It's time to put the old one to rest. When they don't, I'm done.

[Patricia Rice]

80 blogs! I'm in awe. Do you ever sleep?

I'm a word person, so the feel of a book does nothing for me. I've maybe bought a book for its cover twice. So that's not working for me. And I can pretty much read between the lines on those back cover blurbs, so they all sound the same.

I sympathize with the removal of favored authors. We're creative. We like new things. Editors hate it when we change a successful series. Trying to put together the two can be disastrous. Another reason I'm hoping ebooks will shake up the market. So even if you don't read ebooks, maybe it will be a good thing for your favorite authors in the future!

[Anne Gracie]

Pat, I hear you on the time and mental energy taken up by all the prom & social networking we apparently need to do.

I'm now trying to schedule the time to do those because it eats into writing time too much. The difficulty is, the on-line stuff is the "squeaky wheel" that's noisy and demanding, and it can overshadow the quiet percolation of the story dreaming... And it's such an easy enticement when the writing gets difficult...
Self discipline, I think I need an upgrade and a boost. LOL

But I do love discovering good authors and good books, and for me, word of mouth is the best. Mind you some of that word-of-mouth has happened through Wench blogs and interviews. Nothing sucks me in like a good extract.

[theo]

Pat, I only skim the headers. If something catches my eye in the header, then I look at it so though I have that many on my list, I don't read them all every day :o)

I don't have a problem with an author who changes genre as long as she's honest about it and by that I mean, if the author has finished with one, or is branching out into a new one and tells her readers, I can absolutely respect that. No author should be pigeonholed into one thing. Though I might not read the new direction, that doesn't mean I no longer follow the author.

The ones that have been writing a romance series and halfway through that series, the books suddenly become UF and they no longer have a HEA. So the author starts with 6-8 male characters, the first four are romance which is what they're advertised as, then suddenly on the fifth, no HEA, the world is collapsing and things are being rearranged to fit the current character's story rather than staying true or consistent with the world originally created...it would be better to wrap up the series and start anew. At least, that's me.

Am I making sense? I'm not sure if I am or not. It's hard to explain well.

I envy any author who can write in multiple genres. I just think they should be kept separate, not switched half way through.

[Sue]

I have my automatic buy list of favourites. I don't read blogs so rely on recommendations from friends for new authors. I have a circle of friends who love to read and have set me off in new directions with great books. Since I got my Kobo I am trying new genres and authors because the e books can be so much cheaper. I don't mind wasting $2-3 on a dud! I have never bought a book based on the cover art but I have not bought a book because of it. I hate the bodice ripper, half naked men covers, especially when they are wearing modern fabrics in a period novel.
I have also tried new authors based on a recommendation from a favourite author.
This is the only "books" site that I visit.

[Wynne]

I mostly buy favorite authors and have found some new ones through the Word Wenches roll. Currently I'm catching up on Edith Layton's books. Less often, I use Amazon reviews. I agree with Linda's reasoning that many romance reviews are unhelpful, but I still use Amazon because it helped me find a few true winners (the latest, Meredith Duran). If I wanted more romance books for my reading pile, I might check out the RITA nominees.

[Patricia Rice]

Theo, you're making perfect sense. I haven't run across a series yet that changes genres midstream. I can see where that would be disconcerting! I reach for my favorite author/series when I'm in the mood for whatever it is I expect from them. To not get a HEA when I was expecting one would leave me seriously bummed.

Having reliable friends really helps, Sue! I exchange info on "what I'm reading" with friends with similar tastes so we can check out the good stuff, but there are soooo many books and so little time!

Amazon reviews might be helpful in that some of the better reviewers will say things like "I don't like the level of violence." The rating is useless but knowing the book is violent is handy. And I'm looking forward to seeing the new list of Rita nominees!

[Mary Tobin]

It is interesting all the time you need to spend on promotion. It brought to mind the wikipedia article on Georgette Heyer that said "After her novel These Old Shades became popular despite its release during the General Strike, Heyer determined that publicity was not necessary for good sales. For the rest of her life, she refused to grant interviews, telling a friend: "My private life concerns no one but myself and my family." What a difference!
On the question of find authors I like the website fantasticfiction.co.uk. Besides listing the current authors writings by series, it includes forthcoming books and has author recommendations and authors with similar styles.

[Lyn S]

I love the wenches and I love series. But this new service would allow me to be my own author.
http://www.bookbyyou.com/romance/default.asp
Don't worry, I prefer to wait (ok not that patiently) for your next book.