It’s hard finding a way to keep your book fresh in the eyes of the reading public, especially when you’ve been promoting like crazy. I’d hit a wall in my creative energy and was wondering what to do when I came up with an idea in 7th grade Science class- one that has given me more joy than I ever anticipated. I took a jump ‘outside the box’ and decided to create an account for my ‘BookBaby’ – a series of adventures told from the first person standpoint of ‘Evening in the Yellow Wood’ aka ‘Woody’- and since we were leaving for Florida in a few days, I knew I’d have a virtual treasure trove of material.
I started out taking pictures of Woody under the Christmas tree, talking about wanting to open gifts but not knowing how to use her branches (she is a girl, by the way.) These posts quickly morphed into more elaborate pictures of my daughter standing in front of Cinderella’s Castle in the Magic Kingdom or virtual ‘surfing’ on Cocoa Beach. My kids got into it, helping me think of ideas and asking ‘Do you have Woody?’ whenever we left our hotel to do something fun.
‘Woody’s Book Tour’ has been going strong on Instagram for almost two months now, and I’ve even added a Twitter account that is gaining steam as well. I put together a PowerPoint of Woody’s adventures that I use at my book signings and had my first giveaway after I reached 100 Followers.
In short, I adore Woody (even though I dropped her in the parking lot when I found the gym used in ‘Stranger Things’ was unlocked- and she was run over by a van… but that’s another story), and I want to keep her adventures going for as long as I can. It seems like every time I start to run out of ideas, something new pops up. I’ve told people a number of times that my Woody account is almost as much fun as writing my manuscript, although some days I think it’s a photo finish.
Because Woody gives me something that writing my manuscript doesn’t- freedom to be funny and childish and creative in a way that gets my book in front of potential readers EVERY SINGLE DAY. When an author creates new work, it’s often a lonely and isolating process, which is why blog posts and conferences and Instagram accounts like the one I set up for Woody can be so fulfilling. It’s immediate, and no one is telling you to cut this, or add that, or that it’s going to be another decade until your release date. It happens now, and sometimes that lightning-fast, raw transition from rough draft to finished product is what gets a writer’s juices flowing. It’s a way to flex our creative muscle and get noticed in the here and now. Because, let’s face it, we always want people to love our stuff, even if we claim otherwise.
And so I encourage all sensitive writers to find an outlet for your inner extrovert. Create. Play. Have fun. Find a way to keep your book alive in the eyes of readers that can become desensitized to a virtual bombardment of sales techniques. I’ve lost count of the number of unsolicited messages/Ads I get from writers I’ve followed on Instagram, asking me to ‘look at their latest novel.’ Let me tell you a little secret… that crap doesn’t WORK! And nine times out of ten the person you’ve just Promo- Bombed will be so turned off they won’t look at your stuff even if the premise does interest them.
So lighten up. Think outside the box. Throw the line out into the current and see if the Reader bites (as opposed to following them into their home and flashing your shiny book, er hook) …
You might be surprised at the results. And you might just make some genuine connections not only for your ‘BookBaby’, but yourself as well.