Wednesday, May 26, 2010

An Author's Motivational Speech I Adore

A Night Too Dark: A Kate Shugak Novel (Kate Shugak Novels)A Night Too Dark: A Kate Shugak Novel (Kate Shugak Novels) - Dana Stabenow's latest release.

Who is Dana Stabenow?

Dana Stabenow is an author of twenty-five novels, 20 short stories and essays, 50 Alaska Traveler columns and multiple feature articles for Alaska magazine, and hundreds of blog posts. She recently spoke at the Oklahoma Writers Federation 2010 Conference and graciously posted her speech on her blog. What an informative, motivational and educational speech!

I've printed it off to highlight, underline and store in my folder I intend to use when my novels hit the world, one day. You'll learn more from this speech than you will from a dozen websites.

But this phrase really caught my eye:

Remember this if you remember nothing else from my speech tonight. It turns out that an active buy link in a newsletter targeted at people who really want to get it is the most effective means of selling your book.

In other words, know who will read your book, target them, and build a relationship with them. You have to adore the people you want to adore you. It's a two-way exchange.

More books by Dana Stabenow:
A Deeper Sleep: A Kate Shugak Novel (Kate Shugak Novels)A Deeper Sleep: A Kate Shugak Novel (Kate Shugak Novels)

Fire and Ice: A Liam Campbell Mystery (Liam Campbell Mysteries) Fire and Ice: A Liam Campbell Mystery (Liam Campbell Mysteries)

A Grave Denied (Kate Shugak Mysteries, No. 13) A Grave Denied (Kate Shugak Mysteries, No. 13)

3 comments:

Debbie Maxwell Allen said...

I agree. This was an excellent speech. It's going in my Google Notebook under "marketing". How nice for someone to explain what they would and wouldn't do again, based on results!

Tricia Sanders said...

Hope,

I attended OWFI and heard Dana's speech in person. It was the best keynote speech I have ever heard at a writer's conference, and I've heard a lot of them. Dana impressed me with her down-to-earth nature.

I like how she didn't sugar-coat the amount of work that the author is going to have to put in once the book is written and she didn't do it at the expense of editors and agents. She's a class act.

She's gets two-thumbs up in my book any day.

Tricia Sanders

Anthony J. Langford said...

Thanks for the heads up Hope.. That one quote of Dana's is good, but I thought there were many other good ones on her original post...

I guess it helps to be published first but it does give great insight into the cold reality of the publishing world of today..

Thanks to all....