Building a Platform… Continued

by Gayle Bartos-Pool

 

We will continue where we left off last time. Here are several more things to consider while you are constructing that platform.

 

 

 

 

Point #5

1. Acquire the ‘Write’ Type of Friends. Join a hands-on writer’s group in your area. These are groups that critique each others’ work. Knowing people who are trying to make their own work better and who want to help you as well is good for the psyche. You might have to join more than one group before you find one that fits your age group and temperament. (Trust me, there is a difference.) Some writers still appreciate proper grammar and spelling. (Some don’t.) And remember: you aren’t married to these groups, so leave if one doesn’t click. Or start your own group with people sharing your values, temperament, and needs. You want to improve your writing skills, so make sure this is a learning experience. And be very generous with your skills. Sharing your writing knowledge with others is part of the “platform” building. And you will improve all your editing skills by critiquing other people’s work.

 

Join on-line writers groups to keep your finger on the pulse of the business, and to make contacts and maybe get a few readers when your book comes out. This is another way networking pays off.

Point #6

2. Stand Up and Be Counted. After you have joined a national writers’ organization like Sisters-in-Crime or Mystery Writers of America and you find you like what they offer, ask what you can do to help out. Volunteer. People will learn that they can rely on you. If the board members see that you are a good worker, you might find yourself on a committee or two. Get that face of yours out there. If you are willing to go the extra mile, see if you can get on the board and be one of those deciding what that group of writers can do to help each other as well as the community at large. This shows that you are a mover and shaker.

After I joined Sisters-in-Crime/Los Angeles, I was asked to join the board. I started out as Speakers Bureau Director. I set up writers’ panels all over the area. I first went through the roster of members, located websites for those members with one, learned what they wrote, and got an idea what types of panels I could offer local libraries based on the types of books these folks wrote. I did cozy panels, Noir, mysteries with a travel theme. 80 panels later, I pretty well know who wrote what.

While I was doing this, I was learning more and more about what I needed to concentrate on as a writer. I acted as coordinator for these events, not a panelist. Later, when I was asked to be on a panel or two myself, I came prepared because I could see what worked and what didn’t.

But it was still a learning experience for me. I spent a lot of time talking about the characters I had written. I thought they were interesting and talked to the audience about who they were.

Then one time when I was on a panel at a library I just happened to mention that I used to be a private detective. Bam! People wanted to know about that aspect of my life, not about the characters I had created.

That was when I learned that people were interested in the writer, the writer’s life, and how as a writer we came up with characters and plot, not necessarily about the book the writer had written. Sure the audience wanted some information about the book since that was what we were selling, but they really wanted to know about the writer, in this case: me. And I had something to tell them.

If you have a talent for teaching, you might try your hand at giving a class about writing or the business of writing. Pamela Samuels-Young teaches a terrific class on “How to Write a Novel and Still Keep Your Day Job.” She also does a presentation on marketing your book.

I have known writers who have taught classes on “How to Read Out Loud in Front of a Crowd” and “How to Get and Keep an Agent.” Their expertise led them to sharing their knowledge with others.

As for me, after turning out a collection of short stories of my own and the Johnny Casino Casebook series which consists of seven to ten stories per book, I was asked to teach a class on the short story. Since Sisters-in-Crime put out an anthology every other year, my class would fit right in.

Deciding that a game plan was in order, I went over the files for every one of those stories I had written up to that time and realized there was a method to this madness that I loved. I wrote down the steps I used in writing every story and turned out a fairly organized handout for the class. The class was a lot of fun and I got to teach it several different places.

Then another thought hit me. Why couldn’t I turn those class handouts into a book, a workbook? It wouldn’t be a lot of words, but rather a blueprint of how I actually wrote a story. Since I was using the same game plan for all my work, I used that as my road map.

So I wrote down the plan, provided numerous examples, and even put a few of my favorite stories in the back of the workbook. Since I basically dissected the short story I called the book The Anatomy of a Short Story Workbook.

 

Keep notes of your writing progress, experiences, and things you have learned. If you have a method in your own writing madness, that just might be the basis of a class you can give at a local library or at the next writers’ conference. It’s another presentation where your skills will come into play.

 

Your leadership skills are being polished and you didn’t even know it. It’s another “platform” to add to your collection.

 

Point #7

3. Paddle Your Own Canoe. Submit articles to on-line writers’ magazines or write for your local weekly newspaper. You can submit book reviews or articles on local writers like yourself, or maybe cover community news or write special interest articles. Write newsletter articles for the groups to which you belong whether it’s your kid’s school or your church. You will be writing and people will be seeing your name in print.

As a freelance reporter, you can get out there and talk to people, the very people who just might show up at your first book launch. You will be somebody who is doing something in your community rather than sitting back and waiting for things to float your way. Paddle your own boat and you will get to your goal a lot faster.

 

Point #8

4. Planning Ahead. Okay, you have honed a few skills now. Maybe you have even sold a short story or two. You are contemplating the time when that brilliant publisher realizes that you have a publishable book and snaps you up. You will finally have something in print with your name on it. Hooray.

 

Question: What will you do then?

 

Answer: Find people who want to read it.

 

Problem: You hadn’t thought about this part earlier.

 

Solution: Let’s think about it now.

Selling one book at a time at a local bookstore might be a little slow. How about finding a group of people who might be interested in your particular subject matter? Sue Ann Jaffarian’s protagonist, Odellia Grey in Booby Trap, is a pleasantly plump paralegal. Sue Ann is a trained paralegal. She speaks at paralegal conventions. And lawyer conventions. She parlayed her real life job skills into a series of novels and then doubled down to promote herself and her books at conferences featuring the very same people. That’s a good marketing technique.

 

Say you wrote about a “super chef/sleuth.” You might try asking a cooking utensil convention to let you come and speak. Or a food convention. Or a cruise line that caters to foodies. Find groups of people with whom you have a connection. If your protagonist is over forty (or maybe even in their sixties), try senior citizen groups. If your plot centers on the aerospace industry, ask NASA if you can speak at their next get-together. It doesn’t hurt to ask.

Planning ahead sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it? You might even rearrange your plot to put some big business entity in it (in a good light, of course) just so you can be invited to their next convention.

Market your book and yourself. Examine your skills, talents, interests, previous or current job and see how they can be used to promote that book of yours. Remember: You want to sell books, but mostly, you want to sell yourself.

…. Hang in there. There is one more posting to come later this summer. You can do this.