Challenges, challenges, and a few more challenges for the first-time author: Garrie Boldsmith on the importance of marketing your book . . .
Some 2 ½ years ago, I embarked upon a journey I had aspired to for decades – to write a work of fiction. Having no prior experience of writing fiction, I enlisted the help of an independent editor, who guided me on some key aspects, including describing the principal characters early on; finishing chapters with an air of expectation or intrigue; maintaining the drama throughout and the like.
Apart from that initial guidance, one other memorable expression comes to mind from the exhilarating, challenging and satisfying journey I had embarked upon. The words were said to me as I was about to finish the book and start looking to have it published. They were said not by an independent editor but by a friend of a friend of a friend who had written a book. The words still resonate:
“Now you’ll find you’ll spend as much time marketing the book as you spent writing it.”
A Marketing Strategy
After waiting most of a lifetime to write a book, I was super-excited when the occasion finally arrived. I was now able to sit down, let the creative juices flow and allow my fingers to tickle (more like “hammer”) the keyboard. I had done some limited research on marketing but had not formulated any particular strategy. I was conscious of the warnings a number of people had given me that a very high percentage of would-be first-time authors never finish a book they started. I was not deterred by those warnings. I remained fully committed and nothing was going to shake that commitment. Writing the book was absolute priority, marketing barely got a thought.
I completed the book in the middle of 2025. Iran, We Ran, by Garrie Boldsmith. The story primarily follows the lives of two Iranians who need to flee their native country on account of persecution or retribution. One is gay, the other a drug smuggler. I was overjoyed and very proud of myself. Now it was time to look in detail at marketing activities.
Getting Published
I made contact with a number of literary agents and spent a large amount of time researching the three types of publisher which appear to exist nowadays – traditional publishers, self-publishers and the hybrid version often referred to as vanity publishers.
Literary agents, I discovered, tend to exist on a feast or famine basis. Lots of work or none. Neither of those situations was helpful to me. A busy literary agent wouldn’t have time and a literary agent with no work tended to go on vacation or engage in other activities to generate some revenue.
As for traditional publishers, there are considered to be five majors. They are generally hesitant about new authors and some of them will only accept a manuscript if submitted by a literary agent.
As for self-publishing, it did not take me long to come to the realisation I did not possess the necessary skills, including computer skills.
I was determined not to allow my book to languish, literally and metaphorically, on a shelf somewhere collecting dust.
Hybrid publishers have increased in number and have positively developed some of their processes. Unfortunately, their positive achievements are often overshadowed by the perception they are just “money grabbers’, far more interested in their own enrichment than the best interests of the author. Their marketing services can be as costly as their publishing packages and, often, those marketing services are only fully addressed once the publishing services have been completed, and by which time the author is already hooked.
Marketing: Time-Consuming but Essential
If there is one major piece of advice I can give to new authors, it is this – once you have started to formulate what you want to write about, and have a reasonable idea of the structure and content, give consideration to marketing. It is understandable for authors to be focussed on the manuscript but finishing one is of little comfort if the marketing is inadequate and the book is not sold. A masterpiece could be created that nobody reads. Marketing can be very time-consuming and can be very costly if professionals are retained.
For my part, I have designed my own marketing strategies assisted from time to time with advice from a professional marketing consultant.
Happy writing, happy publishing and happy marketing.
Garrie Boldsmith