by Edie Melson @EdieMelson
These days we all know that writers need blogs. But blogs
need content, and therein lies our dilemma. How much information should we give
away for free on a blog?
This is less of an issue for the fiction writers out
there—it’s common knowledge that publishers frown on authors sharing large
chunks of a fiction manuscript in advance of publication. There are exceptions to this, but they're just that, exceptions.
The gray area comes with those of us who write non-fiction. We usually build our sites around the topics of our books. How much valuable—publishable—information can
we really afford to give away? The answer may surprise you.
We need to give away pretty much all
of it.
Yep, you read that right, and here’s why:
- Nonfiction writers need credibility to find success.
- The easiest way to build that credibility is to blog about it.
- Having an authoritative blog will build your audience.
- Building your audience proves there's an audience and makes you more attractive to potential publishers.
Now the next question is obvious.
If you give all the
information away on your blog, who will buy your book?
It may surprise you to
learn that the people who read your blog—the ones with ready access to all
that free information—will be your most loyal customers. That little bit of
truth caught me off guard when I first heard it. But it happened to me, and it
happens all the time.
My Story
As you may have gathered, I’m somewhat of a social media
expert. I built that expertise, and more importantly the delivery of that
expertise on my blog. When I first started sharing what I knew about social
networking I had no plans to write a book.
Then a publisher read my blog and asked if I would be
interested in writing a social media book. I was in the middle of several
deadlines and the thought of coming up with enough new material to fill a book
frankly gave me hives. I emailed the publisher back with my concerns and asked
for a time-frame, hoping it would include the breathing space I needed to get
everything done. His answer floored me. He wanted to publish the material I’d
already put on my site. Turns out the popularity of my blog proved there was a
market for what I’d written.
That little ebook, Social
Media Marketing for Writers (Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas), shot to the number one spot on Amazon in its
category in less than a month, and it stayed in the top five for over a year
and a half. No one cared that they could find the information for free on my
site. Now that ebook (no longer available) has been updated, expanded upon, and
rereleased as Connections: Social Media& Networking Techniques for Writers and is available in print as well
as e-version.
But back to the question, if you consider the issue
logically you’ll see why giving it all away works.
- The people who follow your blog regularly want the information you're presenting.
- They have committed to you through your blog, so they’re the most likely to help you promote the book.
In the parlance of Seth Godin, they are your tribe. And this tribe will be
loyal. You’ve developed a strong relationship with them because you gave them
something of value, without asking or expecting anything in return.
Unfortunately that’s becoming more and more rare these days.
But if they already know where to find the information why
would they buy the book? The truth is, we’ve become a society of convenience.
We want what we want—and we want it now.
No one has time to search through
archived blog posts when they can have a book with all the information
instantly available.
The bottom line is this.
- Use your blog to write about the topics that fire your passion.
- Let your blog to prove there’s an audience for your ideas.
- Then grow that audience into a loyal tribe who will support you after publication.
Because when you get right down to it, is there anything a publisher loves more than
a ready-made audience? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this subject? Leave your comments in the section below.
Don't forget to join the conversation!
Blessings,
Edie
TWEETABLES
NOTE: A version of this article was originally publishing in Southern Writer's Magazine (Novemember 2013)
Very good, thank you, Edie. This is good information. Yes, It would be much handier to be able to look through a book for information than continually fight through stuff on a computer.
ReplyDeleteThat is information I never thought about but it makes sense in our fast-paced society. We want to have everything at the click of a button.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your story, Edie!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this information. I have always written primarily fiction, but recently began developing an idea for a non-fiction book. I've blogged about it some, and spoken about it some, but I've been wrestling with the question of how much is too much to share. I'll run out of words eventually (though my family may disagree!). Thank you!
ReplyDelete