Thoughts on Bublish

by Patricia Reding

An author’s being active on social media is necessary these days. It is a way to get one’s name out and to help to build a following. But it takes precious time from the writer’s craft and we writers are often left wondering if it’s all worth it. Then, along came Bublish (at www.Bublish.com).  Without a doubt, I’ve come to love this tool.

These days, it is fairly easy to discover what readers think of works. They tell us, most notably, through their posted reviews. There are also outlets like Wattpad that give them the opportunity to comment on bits and pieces of an overall work and even to engage in discussions with the author. But Bublish is different because its focus is for an author to share with readers the back story behind her creations.

The concept of Bublish is that the author takes portions of her work and then shares them with readers, adding comments about those excerpts. The author might explain how those portions of the story came to be, or how real-life events brought the portions about or influenced them in some manner. For example, I’ve written “Book Bubbles” about such things as:

How I struggled with the idea of whether or not to include an introduction/preface to my tale: http://bit.ly/1YyN6Xb;

What words and concepts I used in the opening scene to create suspense: http://bit.ly/1HtGNzS

The significance of smell/scent (an oft-forgotten sense) in my stories: http://bit.ly/1HtJOAb;

How I research for information while writing: http://bit.ly/1HtX5sD; and

How I use “doorways” and similar devices to urge readers to continue reading: http://bit.ly/1Q5Pinn.

And take a look at the “look” of Bublish. It is quite handsome, don’t you agree?

Once a BookBubble is created and posted, the author may share it on Facebook, Twitter, and elsewhere. Then the magic of Bublish really begins, as the author can follow her metrics to discover how many views there have been of the Bubble and on what outlets, the number of times it was shared by email or re-posted on Twitter or Facebook, the number of viewers who checked out the author’s profile on Bublish or elsewhere, and so on. What’s more, the author can see what retailers those who saw a BookBubble went to so as to check out the work. But Bublish does not stop there. It also allows readers to “follow” the author so as to receive notice every time the author posts a new BookBubble, keeping the author’s name and works in the reader’s sights.

I would love for you to follow me on Bublish. Just click the “Follow on Bublish” button at https://www.bublish.com/author/view/6479 and join me for the background to my creating the Oathtaker journey!

Multi-award-winning author Patricia Reding leads a double life. By day, she practices law. By night, she reads, reviews a wide variety of works, and writes fantasy. She lives on an island on the Mississippi with her husband and youngest daughter (her son and oldest daughter having already flown the nest), and Flynn Rider (an English Cream Golden Retriever). From there she seeks to create a world in which she can be in two places at once. She started writing The Oathtaker Series as a challenge, and re-discovered along the way, the joy of storytelling.

Why Publicity Builds Legitimacy

by Shel Horowitz

Why is it important to get news coverage? Of course, you hope that people who see the article or hear/watch the interview will buy your book. But the real payoffs continue long after the paper is recycled, the interview is forgotten.

People need ways of sorting the good stuff from the junk--especially in our oversaturated age, with over 100,000 new books published each month just in the U.S., and tens of thousands more flooding in from other markets. Since even a really avid reader can only manage about three books a week, tops (or 150 or so in a year) and most people will read only a handful in a year, your audience wants a way to know which books are good.

When that reader gets to your website and sees that you've been covered in famous publications...interviewed on dozens of shows...gotten endorsements from prominent achievers in your field (and from ordinary readers like them)...all these things work to build that all-important credibility with the reader. With all those reasons to take a chance on you their unfamiliarity with you as an author becomes much less of a barrier.

Also, in most cases, these kinds of credentials establish your credibility *with the media.* Reporters and editors will know, first of all, that you are worth talking to because all these other publications and stations and websites found you worth covering--and also that you're reasonably comfortable being interviewed and won't freeze up over the air. So they're more likely to call you as a source; and publicity builds more publicity. (The exception: some of the largest TV shows won't want you if you've been aired by their direct competitors--but that's pretty much only an issue for shows like Good Morning America and the Today Show.

Shel Horowitz walks you down the path from unpublished writer to well-published and well-marketed author. A publishing consultant and book marketing writer, he’s helped several writers publish award-winning books. Several of his own 10 books have won awards and or been resold to foreign publishers, including Guerrilla Marketing Goes Green, which was a category bestseller on Amazon at least 34 separate months.