The Introvert’s Guide to Launching a Book

Note from Jane: Today’s guest post is by publisher and author L.L. Barkat (@llbarkat) of Tweetspeak Poetry.


If you write a book, it’s natural to want to promote it, right?

As an introverted writer—who for many years misdiagnosed herself as an extrovert because she was outgoing—I can say, without a doubt: no, it’s not natural.

While it might be natural for the extroverted writer, it is anything but natural for the introverted writer when promotion means constant extension of that writer’s self into the world.

Of course, this is a serious problem. No promotion, no discovery. No discovery, no sales. No sales, no impact.

And impact is often what first drives us to write. We want to share a story or a secret that will change people’s lives, entertain them, or give them vision and hope. What a conundrum!

Hope for the introverted writer

There’s a very important distinction tucked into what I’ve said so far, and that is found in the word “when,” as in “when promotion means constant extension…”

This distinction is especially critical for the writer who wants to launch not just one book but multiple books over time. Successive launches make the long haul feel very long indeed. And they make the haul feel like just that: a constant carrying, a burden you simply can’t put down if you want your work to make its way.

Now, unless you are Harper Lee, you are probably going to launch more than one book during your career. In that case, for you, the introvert, I’m sharing six ways to keep your head above water not just for your first book, but also for the long haul.

Here’s the key: each of these ways represents mindsets and methods that mean less constant extension of the self, with an emphasis on things that feel small-scale and limited-time. And remember, just because something feels small-scale and limited-time, doesn’t mean its impact is tiny and timebound.

1. Keep the focus on others

As a new author (ten titles ago), I followed the crowd and focused primarily on my own book and my personal platform. I started a blog that took endless hours to maintain, I entered the social media scene, I spoke at large venues (some upwards of 1,300 people). I knocked myself out, and eventually felt exactly that: knocked out.

In the past few years I’ve come to recognize that my approach was anti-introvert and often anti-me. Some of that work can now be considered important dues paying, but much of it has actually become grist to consider a gentler way for introverts to launch their books.

The first launch principle is to keep the focus on others. For me, that means:

  • No launch team. Launch teams are often charged with what feels like thinly veiled “look at me!” messages from the author. This can be okay if the author is good with it and the message is creative, but I’ve personally opted out on this, because it goes against my introvert grain. So, if you’re an introvert, consider skipping the launch team.
  • No professional publicist. About five books ago, I hired a publicist. She came highly recommended, but ultimately I had to “sell” my work to her in ways that I now realize were not compatible with my introverted self. While she did her job in a professional and timely manner, the process was not enjoyable, and the outcomes were minimal. Bottom line: if you decide to hire a professional publicist, consider how hard you’ll have to sell your work to them and whether the two of you are really a fit.
  • Golden DressHire a publicity assistant. If you have connections, and really, if you’re publishing a book, you should have already taken the time to develop some solid connections, then you might be able to hire a publicity assistant instead of a professional publicist. After all, one of the big things a publicist should offer is connections, and if you’ve got them, why pay $5,000+ for someone else’s. I’m doing this for my latest title, The Golden Dress, and I’ve chosen an assistant who loves my work and was one of the first to purchase the title—no “selling” to do here; she gets me, she gets my writing. We plan to have fun together, as she’ll be the bold one to make constant contact, and I’ll enjoy giving her a paid means to exercise her personality and skills. If the idea of making constant contact with multitudes for even a few months makes you shiver, too, go smaller and work with an assistant whose personality and camaraderie you’ll enjoy.
  • Content marketing (even at someone else’s place). Writing evergreen book-related material is a great way to connect people with your title while giving them something else in the bargain. The content lives on long after you provide it, connecting more and more people with your book over time. For example, to connect people to The Golden Dress, I wrote 10 Terrific Little Red Riding Hood Tales (at Tweetspeak) and A Magical Summer Reading List (at Edutopia). While content marketing is generally understood as something you do at your own place, for the introvert it can be more satisfying to put the focus on others by writing for their sites instead. As an added benefit, you reach audiences that go beyond your own space.
  • Promote someone besides yourself. This may be easier with titles where you have a partner. For instance, I have a lot more energy when it comes to promoting my collaborators like Gail Nadeau, Donna Z. Falcone, and LW Lindquist—all illustrators whose work either makes me smile or takes my breath away. Still, with a little creativity, you can find ways to promote those who inspired you to the work or who can benefit from the work. It’s not that all this promotion will result in sales, but you’ll feel happier overall, which will give you important staying power.

2. Make art (and encourage art making)

When you first wrote your book, it probably felt like you were making art (at least that’s how book-making feels to me).

If you have a little design flair, or a friend who can lend a hand, I highly recommend continuing in the spirit of art-making by creating a few fun products at a provider like Zazzle.

These products will mostly sell to your die-hard fans, but you’ll receive a small amount of extra cash while launching your book with accompaniments that will outlast the launch date. Also, you can affordably acquire some swag for yourself in a way that creates seamless conversation pieces at work or on-the-go. (I carry my A Is for Azure tote everywhere. It’s beautiful and functional, and it makes me happy.)

Additionally, do you know anyone artistic who might enjoy extending or interpreting the themes in your book? Art is energy. And art is joy. Personally, I encourage all types of artistic responses, especially ones that I don’t have the skills or vision to create myself, like these videos from my daughters (and yes, daughter-the-second will do videos for hire, if you are in need of a trailer for your book).

3. Think beyond sales

As I noted in the opening of this article, “No sales, no impact.” And, while it makes a good general point, it’s not altogether accurate. There is impact to be made by taking the approaches above: focusing on others and art-making. There is also impact to be made by simply giving your books away—and not only to achieve sales.

While a sustainable career will eventually need to rely partly on sales (unless you are professionally set due to lifestyle or other forms of support), sustainability is also about the soul, which, for many of us, means feeling a sense of purpose and impact. Giving your books away will ensure they get into the hands of at least some fans, across a base you might not otherwise reach.

Unfortunately, for the introvert, formal giveaways can feel like another round of “me-me-me.” That’s why I’ve shied from them in the past. However, with a modest budget (under $1,000), you can enlist an entity like Goodreads to do the shoutouts on your behalf (here’s what they’re doing for me).

The extra advantage of Goodreads is that you’re reaching a reading community, as opposed to a more general audience that may or may not spend their precious dollars on books.

4. Use automated services

One of the current prime directives for authors is to offer a newsletter and use it to market their books to readers. Besides adding carrying costs, this model requires a constancy that spells “overwhelm” for the introverted author. If you’re like me, this will mean you won’t do the required newsletter marketing, because, again, it feels too “me-me-me.” Eventually, you’ll end up paying dearly to carry a big list, with little return in book sales.

What’s your alternative? Try using automated services that allow you to design once, then them let roll. My services of choice, through MailChimp, are Google ads and the creation of education series. The most effective Google ads lead potential readers to your education series. Your education series will communicate multiple times with the reader, in a way that leaves you out of the constancy picture and gives them something that invites and intrigues. While this doesn’t always lead to book sales (though it certainly sells more books than non-existent newsletter marketing), it definitely creates impact, as people engage in their own creative acts in conversation with your work.

Interested in seeing a sample? Feel free to borrow ideas from my Rumors of Water series or The Golden Dress series.

5. Stretch just a little

I like to think of a book launch as something that actually happens again and again—kind of like batting a balloon into the air then keeping it airborne with small taps over time. In fact, the author who treats the book launch like one big helium balloon marked “Buy my book now!” is almost sure to find that balloon deflated in the next canyon over, sometimes within mere months.

The problem for the introvert, yet again, is that a million taps over time leaves us feeling tapped. This is especially hard when the taps are happening via live gigs that require us to interact with crowds.

For me, that means I now forego making live appearances (though I might be really tempted to attend a golden dress ball, and wear this dreamy number, minus the prom date, should anyone wish to plan the event).

As an alternative to live appearances—with the benefit that I can immediately retreat and recover in solitude afterwards—I make time for select live audio and print interviews, like these at Joy on Paper and Shelf Awareness.

Whatever it is that tires your introverted self out, I suggest you avoid it for the most part, but do choose to stretch yourself a bit at intervals—as a way to keep the book balloon in the air. The freshness of these intermittent experiences will create a bit of power, and that power contains a vitality that can be appealing to potential readers.

6. Decompress daily

The Internet is a constant place, filled with hype and, sometimes, hopelessness. This is damaging for many people, and it’s quite likely even more problematic for introverts.

Still, the current call to authors is to engage via social media, constantly.

Since I take the long view of my writing career—and that means I’ve got to keep whole and sane—I’ve lately chosen to refrain. I’m not doing Facebook groups. I’m rarely on Twitter. And Instagram has yet to convince me of its allure (despite that I do understand how if you put yourself out there night and day, you can become a celebrity writer of sorts).

For a long time, I did play the Internet constancy game. But it wasn’t sustainable for my introverted heart and soul. I now decompress daily, removing myself from technology, by sitting outside with a cup of tea and gazing off into the green. I take the kinds of approaches presented in this post. If you’re an introverted author, you might give yourself permission to do the same.

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Sylvia A. Nash

Thank you for the encouragement to be myself! I suspect that might work better. 🙂

L.L. Barkat

It seems to me we can work outside our “best selves” for a while, but that often leads to burnout, depression, and despair. Do you have a book (or more) already, Sylvia?

Sylvia A. Nash

I do. I have several, but my marketing efforts leave much to be desired. I’m thrilled that I have the number of readers I do have, but it’s hard to help people see you or your books when you stay in the shadows. I’m working on it though.

L.L. Barkat

Who do your current readers tend to be? 🙂

Sylvia A. Nash

I have no idea! I just know when a book sells or pages are read. I know who my target audience is for the different books. For example, my target audience for my genealogy cozy mystery series (with an amateur sleuth who is a genealogist in her sixties) would be readers who like cozies, like a little history thrown in, are “in to” genealogy, and might be a little older. (I enjoyed Agatha Raisin and Hamish Macbeth long before I got older!) But most of my stories address at least one women’s issue. I haven’t figured out how to cross promote cozy + genealogy + women’s issue. I have a lot to work on!

Bethany R.

What a helpful article for those quieter book-launchers. Original suggestions and overall a refreshing take on publicity.

L.L. Barkat

Thank you, Bethany. It can be so hard to be “quiet” in a book world where there’s so much sound. I’m hoping that a few quiet authors will find something to work with here. 🙂

John Gavin

Wow, this hits home… I’m an “outgoing introvert” who’s written a non-fiction title. I can put myself out there, but can’t sustain it. Book is based on my time as a dating advice columnist – I typically gave advice to women who were dating online as to how we guys go about doing the dating game. It was nice in that readers ‘came’ to me. Asked me questions. I didn’t have to get them. But now I do – and therein lies the rub…

L.L. Barkat

John, can you say a little more about…

• When readers came to you?
• Where were they coming from?
• Also, what means are you currently using to get readers?
(I like that you’re commenting on a blog post, with a picture of you and your sweetheart. That’s a great means in and of itself. 🙂 )

John Gavin

When/where readers came to you?

I was an Online Dating Advice Columnist in an SF Bay Area paper (example here: http://beniciaheraldonline.com/online-dating-coach-are-you-here-to-pick-up-or-drop-off/ ) So all I had to do was write an interesting column on an interesting topic (why and how men and women go about dating SO differently) and my readers sought me out in the Sunday Paper. No real ‘putting myself out there’ on my part, save for the act of writing.

• Also, what means are you currently using to get readers?

So I wrote a book about my year as The Online Dating Coach and included my advice columns in the book. I also wove the story of a woman I met (an editor who was proofreading my work) and I became friends, and then more than friends. She’s now my wife and is the lady in the picture you noticed.

You can see the book here:

https://www.amazon.com/Romeos-Dilemma-true-Modern-Story-ebook/dp/B00K1NVJ1U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529517372&sr=8-1&keywords=romeo%27s+dilemma

As in introvert – albeit a social one – I haven’t been good at getting my book out there, so to speak…

Your thoughts?

John

L.L. Barkat

Okay, this is helpful. I thought maybe you’d meant that *book* readers had been coming to you. But I see now you meant the column readers. 🙂

Of course, I recommend the ideas in this post, but I also wonder if the Herald (and maybe you’ve already asked this) would be willing to update your author profile there with a note about the book and a link out to it? They could maybe get a little affiliate $ from the addition, especially if they also added the book cover (people are more likely to click a book cover). If you still write for them occasionally, that might be the perfect time to ask about an update. Also, has anyone there interviewed you about the book? And, I’m assuming maybe you’re occasionally writing for other online dating sites?

What’s been your best way to get your book out there so far?

Susan RoAne

You suggestions, ideas are so valuable! To write this post for a self-labeled market (The Introverted Author) diminishes its value to ALL authors. It’s gold no matter how we self-describe.

L.L. Barkat

Susan, thanks so much for the perspective. I always love to hear how different authors are making things happen for their books, and I do agree that the ideas in this post could be applicable despite self-descriptions, since they’re strategies that anyone could try (in other words, this post is also in that category of “how different authors make things happen”, should anyone be curious to see the range of options that are out there).

This said, making things happen for the long-term often does create a bit of reflection opportunity, as we see what’s been draining us and what’s been enlivening us across time. I’ve tried so many things over the years, and I’m feeling pretty contented with these (while I’ve let other things go).

What are your current happiest strategies?

Barbara Harper

This is so helpful. I just went to my first writing conference in March, then started following some writing blogs and Twitter feeds, and feel overwhelmed. This helps me know I don’t have to do *everything.*

From the standpoint of a reader, I don’t have time to read newsletters from every author whose books I read. I’d rather read their books. I subscribe to just a few because their newsletters come quarterly or less often and are not full of fluff. I unsubscribed from most author newsletters after the first or second issues because my reading time was better spent elsewhere. So that made me wonder whether newsletters were really as essential as some say. I imagine each other has to experiment with different venues to find out what work best. Thank you for the encouragement!

L.L. Barkat

Such a great point about reader “overwhelm.” In general, where do you tend to find your next reads?

Also, regarding Twitter, it can definitely be overwhelming for some people due to the way it looks and functions. It sounds like you prefer more limited, deeper experiences. Since in-person events can be one of the most effective ways to market your book, you could skip Twitter and focus on conferences instead.

Barbara Harper

I find most of my next reads from book reviews on blogs I follow. Some of my blogging friends I’ve known online for over a decade now and trust their recommendations. My TBR list is so long, I don’t need to add to it, but I do almost every week. But I figure even if I never complete all the books I’d love to read, I’ll always have something to look forward to. 🙂

L.L. Barkat

Thank you, Barbara. Sounds like you have a good reading community you can count on. 🙂 And, here’s to looking forward to future reads. More magic! 🙂

Trish

This is so timely and valuable, thank you. I consider myself a bit of a gregarious loner and I’ve just published a book of poetry. My intention was to print a few (20?) copies and gift them to friends, but thanks to my mum (you need to blog about this!) I now have orders for nearly 100 and my friends want to throw me a book launch (it’ll be amazing and full of people and you need to print more books and make some swag and we’ll advertise and and and) and I’m panicking a little bit.
You have offered me some much needed perspective on how to handle such things with grace without forgetting to take care of my self in the process. I appreciate it much.

L.L. Barkat

Trish, tell me a little more about the panicking part? Also, where are the current orders coming from? (I ask because maybe you want to advertise and maybe you don’t, depending on where your current readers are coming from… how you are reaching them and why they care about the work. 🙂 )

Oh, and a big congratulations on that 100. It’s actually quite a nice number for a poetry book.

Trish

When I first heard the words ‘book launch’, I had envisioned standing across a river from a group of people and using a repurposed tshirt gun, or small trebuchet, to launch the books (outfitted with small parachutes, safety first) so there would be as little human interaction as possible. The notion of getting up in front of a crowd (aka more than 3 people) to share parts of myself, even if it’s friends and family, makes me a bit woozy.

The current orders are coming from friends mostly, I believe the interest is mainly generated from their caring about me more so than the work. Which unfortunately gives the narrative that they’re just doing it to be nice more weight than it likely deserves. Honestly, I never thought I’d be here, on the hard copy side of publishing. Marketing would appear to be the next link in the chain to learn on this adventure.

christy

I really understand your perspective here! My novel comes out in January and Im just panicking at the thought of parties and readings. I’ve given readings before, even, and this whole launch/promotion thing just freezes me. I honestly don’t know how to find readers beyond my personal circle–friends, family, readers of my blog, facebook friends….

stephen

Thank you – great advice, especially for an INTJ!

christy

I loved this so much! My novel, The Wolf Tone, is released in Jan. 2019, from an indie press. I’m searching for help in how to promote the book and it has totally shut down my personal work. I’m wondering about the “publicity assistant” instead of a publicist? And yes, a publicist certainly does seem to be expensive. But I wasn’t aware that was such a thign as publicity assistant. How does a writer find one!!?

Phil

I whole heartedly agree with this. I’m something of an introvert myself, but there’s always the pressure to ‘put yourself out there’ when all I want to do is write my stories. I’m actually in the process of coming up with strategies and tactics which will hopefully not require throwing yourself into social media 24/4, but will have the same effect of gradually building up an audience over time, and allowing me to concentrate on my stories.

Joanna McKethan

Hi, Jane, Your article was refreshing, relaxing, and began building some hope in me for making it as an Indie Introvert Author with to date only 13 books to her name, but working hard at expanding those. I am also an artist and am having the same struggles there, though I have been noisier about my art. Doing anything that hints of groups or multiple decision making saps me dry. Thanks for the new ideas list.
Sincerely,
Joanna