Guide to Building a Book Tour Part 3 of 3: Promoting Yourself 🙈

[This article is syndicated from The Poetry Lab]

Photo by Melanie Deziel on Unsplash

It’s hard to believe my first-ever book tour is OVER. I spent so much time dreaming about it, then cold emailing, then coordinating logistics, then anticipating each event, it feels like it should still be happening. My tour was like a Thanksgiving dinner. The preparation of buying ingredients, defrosting the bird, strategizing what items need to be cooked when and in which devices, all for it to be over after scarfing down a plate or two in a span of 15 minutes or less. (That’s how I eat, anyway!)

I learned a lot throughout this whole process. My first article outlines what I learned about booking events: what worked for me and what didn’t work for me.

My second article focused on selling books while on the road. As I continue to book events for Survived By and my future projects, I will look for venues that come with “canned audiences” as well as venues close by to my friends who I know would enjoy attending my event (and can possibly put me up for a night).

The last insights I will share are about promotion. I learned promotional efforts don’t always equate to a larger audience, but they certainly don’t equate to smaller ones. I also learned that sometimes promotion is within your control, but sometimes it’s…