I didn’t tell very many people I was writing for a long time because I didn’t want to have to talk about not getting an agent, not finding a publisher, not selling any books…admitting I wasn’t succeeding at my effort to become a published author.
Then, when I finally did get an agent, things happened rapidly.
And, since I had a backlog of mysteries I had written, I got four books published in just over a year.
That produced its own set of stresses as I faced a steep learning curve trying to climb the marketing mountain!
Talking About Book Marketing Helped Me Maintain Perspective
What helped me the most in coping with the time before getting published and afterwards being overwhelmed by trying to come up to speed on basic book marketing was being able to talk to my husband on our daily walks. He’s also a writer, so he understands the challenges, and he’s 100 percent supportive.
Just being able to vent is helpful, but he also forces me to think through solutions to problems. A year ago I didn’t have a presence on social media, had no idea what Mailchimp was, couldn’t turn a word document into a PDF or mobi, had never even heard of virtual tours, knew nothing about eBook promotions, on and on it goes.
Talking about these things helped me prioritize and maintain perspective on the size of the undertaking. You can’t learn everything all at once, no matter how much you want to do so.
I Wish I Had Joined a Writers’ Group Years Ago
Another thing I’ve done is become active in the Puget Sound Sisters in Crime.
The group includes published and unpublished authors as well as readers who want to talk about mysteries. I wish I had joined years ago.
One of their members introduced me to a group of local authors who meet regularly to talk about marketing – what promos they are trying, what’s working, and what isn’t worth the time and/or money. Learning from other authors is an invaluable opportunity.
A Product I Saw on Shark Tank Helps My Back Pain
I’ve always had jobs where I could move around a lot, so being behind a computer for long stretches has required some adjustments.
Although I have a good chair and my laptop is on an adjustable height table, that didn’t keep me from feeling some back discomfort when sitting too long, and I dislike standing to work at a computer.
Then I discovered a “harness” called Better Back. (I confess, I saw it on Shark Tank.) It forces you to sit upright, and from the moment I started using it, my back problems ended. (And, no, they didn’t pay me to say that!)
My office is on the second floor, so the other thing I try to do is go downstairs every hour to make myself a cup of tea or to get a drink of water or to grab some popcorn or to just stretch my legs, whatever.
And, yes, we eat a fair amount of popcorn. It’s what I think of as a “slow” snack. It takes time to eat and is satisfying. But we’ve had to cut back on the amount because we quickly learned you don’t need a lot of fuel for a sedentary activity.
Reading Too Much News in the Morning Destroys My Creativity
There are two things that help me maintain focus. The first is following a routine. I write every morning. My afternoons involve more varied activities but mostly related to writing.
The second thing that helps is staying involved with people and what’s happening in my community and the world. I get a lot of my ideas from past experiences and reading, but I also get inspiration from the lives of others.
What destroys my focus and creativity is reading too much news in the morning. I may find grist for a mystery in some of the news coverage, but it can be a mind-blowing distraction.
I am fortunate enough to be able to write full time. And it definitely is a full-time job for me. I’m one of those people who have difficulty only working a 40-hour week at whatever I’m doing. So, when I was employed full time, I did very little writing. I can’t imagine how writers with children at home manage to find time to write. I applaud them!
Sometimes I Feel Guilty Writing Lighthearted Mysteries When Others are Suffering
I recently wrote a guest post for a blog titled “Writing During a Pandemic.” In it I acknowledged the guilt I feel enjoying writing lighthearted mysteries while so many people are suffering.
But just like I need distractions to maintain a healthy mental attitude, I think that a lot of people find solace in reading something that transports them to another world, if only for a brief time, and gives them something to smile about.
Book Marketing Tip: “Stack” Your Promos
I haven’t had my books on sale long enough to know which marketing strategies have been the most productive, but what seems to create the most interest is the virtual tour.
I’m currently doing my third one. I’ve done two free and one paid tour. I’ve enjoyed writing the guest posts and have felt good about the feedback on social media.
One thing I’ve learned from webinars and other authors is that you’re supposed to “stack” promos. Until this last book, I haven’t tried to do that. This time around I’m doing a Goodreads Giveaway, an eBook promotion, a Virtual Tour and a Book Blast over a two week time period. If it works for me, I’ll try it again in the future.
Advice for a Young Writer: Don’t Anticipate Overnight Success
Learn as much as you can about the art of writing. Participate in writing groups. Don’t take criticism personally (we all do, but you have to try not to).
And don’t anticipate overnight success. Some get it, but most of us don’t. It may be a long slog, but well worth the effort.
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In a world filled with uncertainty and too little chocolate, Charlotte Stuart has a passion for writing lighthearted mysteries with a pinch of adventure and a dollop of humor. Her first Discount Detective mystery, Survival Can Be Deadly, was a Foreward INDIES finalist. Why me? Chimeras, Conundrums and Dead Goldfish was a semi-finalist for the Chanticleer Murder and Mayhem contest before it was published.
She began her career in academia with a PhD in communications. After leaving a tenured position to go commercial salmon in Alaska, she became a management consultant and eventually a VP of HR and Training.
Currently she is the VP for Puget Sound Sisters in Crime and lives and writes on Vashon Island in Washington State’s Puget Sound. She spends time each day entertained by herons, seals, eagles and other wildlife.
For more information on Charlotte and her work, please see her website and connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.
Campaigning Can Be Deadly: When two investigators, Cameron Chandler and Yuri Webster, discover a body next to a pile of stolen signs, what began as a prank becomes a murder investigation.
The campaign for the U.S. Congressional seat was referred to in the press as “Mr. Smith goes to Washington versus the carpetbagger.” The local candidate gets all of the endorsements, but he can’t compete with the unlimited resources of his opponent. Funded by an east coast family in the oil business, the out-of-state candidate takes the state by storm, marrying the daughter of a local prestigious family and flooding the airwaves with ads, many of them negative.
Cameron and Yuri soon find themselves targets in a battle between the local candidate, big oil interests and anti-big oil activists, and they discover that there is no doubt that Campaigning Can Be Deadly.
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
Survival Can Be Deadly: Cameron Chandler’s first assignment at Penny-wise Investigations is to locate a runaway girl.
The trail leads to a survivalist camp on a remote island in northern Puget Sound. Armed with only a Swiss Army Knife and her quirky on-the-job training as a suburban sleuth, Cameron uncovers more than she bargained for.
She soon finds herself in a fight for her own survival in this lighthearted mystery set in Seattle and the San Juan Islands to the north.
Foreward INDIES Book Award finalist.
Availalble at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and wherever books are sold.