WRITER'S LIFE ADVICE Archives

How Do You Start & Grow a Newsletter?

May 14, 2019 · 2 Comments

Hopefully, you have already read my two other posts about newsletters/email lists for writers. If you want to catch up you can click to learn why you even need a list and what you can write about.

If you’ve got the content and the drive to start that email list, you may wonder what the next step. This is likely the hardest step because everyone is in this same boat: how do you grow a newsletter until it accomplishes your top goals? As in, what do you need to be doing to get people to buy your books on the regular?

I will do my best to give my insight and experience here. As I’ve already mentioned, my newsletter is roughly 1.5 years old. It needs time to grow just like my Instagram following did. But if you do these following tips, you’ll at least feel like you’re heading in the right direction.

Pick Your Email Service Provider

There are many providers to choose from. I’d recommend looking at the pros and cons of each. If you’re unfamiliar with basic email marketing strategies, they’re honestly going to all feel a bit overwhelming.

I personally use MailChimp because I liked how other email lists looked and I was more familiar with it. I’d recommend looking through this post by Melissa Griffin to learn how to use MailChimp if you’re curious.

There are other platforms to choose from. This post by Sheila talks about other platforms like ConvertKit and MailerLite. From what I understand, these platforms differ in a) what you can do for free b) the interface/design of the website and c) the kinds of tutorials they offer for marketing newbies.

Ensure Your Newsletter Is Stupid-Easy to Join

As much as I hate to admit it, internet culture is all about getting quick and easy information. If people are on your site and they feel like they’re a contestant of Legends of the Hidden Temple and trying to find your newsletter signup, they’re likely going to give up.

What this means is you need to employ every last strategy out there to make it incredibly easy for anyone to sign up. Some common ideas include:

A signup box towards the top of your author website (all important links should be as close to the top as possible)
A popup feature (search for plugins through your website host)
Links in all your social media accounts
Regular social media posts; I schedule a monthly reminder that my newsletter exists and what they can expect to get
A reminder below all blog posts

This may seem like overkill but I promise that it won’t feel overpowering or salesy.

Shine & Show Up

I recently wrote about showing up in your Instagram feed in this post. The same principles apply to your newsletter. You can easily stand out from the other email lists on the block by infusing your newsletter with YOU.

Just about anyone can write an amazing email. What will make yours different from all the others? What will make folks want to open your email?

There are a few things you can consider:

Design—what regular colors, fonts, and header images will you use? Remember that many folks will read your email on their phones, so imagine what is easier on the eyes.
Respond to every comment/reply—this is the easiest way to connect with your readers! You can encourage them to reply if you’re looking for feedback. The more you ask, the more you’ll receive.
Make them feel special—Do they get early access to your sales or giveaways? Do they get first dibs on ARCs? That’s a major perk that many book buyers enjoy. You could also give your followers a nickname that matches your genre.

Now that I think about it, there are some helpful principles for your newsletter that you’ll find from my upcoming ebook, Finding Your Future Fans. I’d recommend that you check out these chapters depending on whether you want to tap into your brand or you want to show off a fabulous design that gets people drawn in to your work.

These are my top go-to tips for ensuring your newsletter truly succeeds. Let me know if you have any other questions or ideas. Let’s work together to help each other succeed.

If you’d like to see my newsletter in action, you certainly can! Subscribe through the pop up on the website, this image below, the prompt to your right, or go here.

Chapter Four: Be Present in Your Content

April 29, 2019 · 2 Comments

The writing community today trends towards representation. Every person has a story to tell, and every reader hopes to find characters that look and think and feel like them.

You can ride this wave by showing your readers who you really are. Yes, I mean your actual appearance, but also where you write, and other elements of your writing journey. Readers often care more about their favorite books and scripts when they know who’s behind that content. Writers are looking for a community to develop their work, and avoid feeling alone in their passions. The sudden surge of diversity has been personally emotional and enjoyable to watch. What a time to be a reader, right?

Here in this chapter, we’ll learn a bit more about community building and how you can be ahead of the game by being present in your content.

Actually Be in Your Photos

This principle might be scary to some of you, but trust me: there is power in literally showing up in your Instagram feed. After noticing some trends in my own feed, I realized that I was getting way more likes and comments on pictures with my face in them than any other type of picture. The same trend plays out in many feeds with similar interests. I got even more if my husband was in the photo, but I’ve promised him I wouldn’t exploit his face for online praise.

This approach means that instead of just sharing flatlays, word counts, or ads I made with stock photos, I included myself more often in my feed. This gives my future fans the chance to get to know me more personally, and who I am as a writer.

What should you do if you’re not a fan of selfies? First, if your concern is technical, I would review the advice I gave in chapter 3 about lighting and basic photography skills. Any selfie is going to turn out better if you’re in good lighting. Second, make your own deliberate choices on how you want to present yourself on Instagram. For example, I have a friend who purposefully shares selfies of herself from the nose up because she’s usually considerably shorter than the rest of her friends. This became a sort of signature pose; we rarely see the rest of her charming face online. You can take my friend’s lead and share yourself on your own terms or in your own creative way.

Share Part of Yourself in the Captions

As natural storytellers, we can use our hard-earned talents to craft some amazing captions. We can actually tell stories in our captions—not about fictional characters, but about ourselves.

As you’ve read the past chapters, I hope you’ve taken some time to think of what makes you a unique writer or storyteller. We all have something real that gives us a reason to write or be creative. It could be that you’re not white and you’ve always wanted to see a character just like you in a book or on the screen. It could be that you have a disability, chronic pain, a unique hobby, a bigger body, unique family circumstances, or anything in between. Do your future fans know these things about you? How can you tell them about these things in your captions?

Try talking to your followers about the why behind your writing. When in doubt you can easily say “I’ve had XYZ experience. Has anyone else felt the same?” This kind of real talk (sometimes having nothing to do with writing) can help you push past the frustrations that social media connection can bring.

I’ve learned over the years that when I’m frustrated by weak engagement, I could choose to be upset and feel like no one cares about my work, OR I could reach out and relate to my future fans. In my captions, I’ve recounted stories from my author experience. I’ve used that text space to share a part of me that no one else can share. I’ve talked about everything from anxiety to body positivity—things that have an indirect effect on my abilities to write and sell books.

If you’re feeling that disconnect from others and you’re not seeing the success you’re hoping for, it unfortunately takes a bit of long-term effort to earn the trust and friendship of those who follow you. But in the end, I highly recommend using your caption to bridge the gaps.

Be Involved in the Comment Section

This part will likely be short and sweet. However, the effects of this tip can dramatically enhance your Instagram feed and overall experience.

If someone takes the time and energy to comment on your stuff, I want you to comment back! It’s your way of saying thanks for their time. You can make the comment extra meaningful by striking up a legitimate conversation with this person. You could ask them a question, compliment them—basically anything besides “Thanks!”

The Instagram algorithm usually favors posts with legitimate interactions, so you’ll essentially serve the folks in your comments but also make your post more available on additional Instagram feeds. In essence, being in the comment section (and commenting on someone else’s posts) is like watering your garden. It’s a daily gesture that creates long-term friendships and success.

Set Firm Boundaries

Raise your hand if I’ve already suggested to do things that you’ve never wanted to consider. That’s normal and okay! My advice is still very feasible and productive if you set up firm boundaries. Your boundaries will help you navigate when to share deep personal truths and when to protect them.

Here are some examples of my boundaries:

I’m present in my feeds, but I have “social media curfews” to avoid spending too much time online.
I ask permission if I want to share a picture that includes other people.
I talk about my own experiences, but I don’t share personal information that is meant to be between me and my spouse or friends.
I share relevant parts of a story or experience but not every painful or private detail.
I do my best to talk positively about my own work, even if my mood’s not positive.
I don’t interact with bots, spam accounts, trolls, or other disagreeable folks. I block when necessary.
I generally don’t post anything over the weekend to give myself a break from “work.”

There’s always room for boundaries. Now that everything lives forever on the internet, it’s up to you to determine which photos you’ll share. Remember, as long as something fits your core brand or author identity, you’re more than welcome to share it. However, you’re still the boss of your feed and you can reserve what you feel is necessary.

Basically, I want you to feel empowered to share what is meaningful to you without feeling like you’ve shared everything and nothing is private anymore. This might not be a huge deal when you’re starting out but eventually, people will get real used to asking of your time, opinion, energy, and talents. Set your boundaries now to know your own terms and conditions when it comes to interacting with others. Also, remember that everyone’s boundaries will look different. That’s okay!

Hopefully, this chapter gives you some insight or principles to guide you. Once you discover what makes you a writer, it’s appropriate to include that in your feed. It’s not just about presenting your book and hoping others will read it; it’s about presenting your author journey. The book community is becoming more transparent and real with each and every social media post. We’re ready to meet the real you and support you in your quest to becoming a published author.

Quick Recap

There are many ways to be present in your feed: in the images, the caption, and in the comment section.
Set firm boundaries to ensure you share what’s necessary to your brand.
Being present in your feed helps your future fans get to know you better and hype up their interest in your books.

Read the Other Chapters

There you go! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please give me your suggestions for what you’d like to see in future chapters. Or, tell me what I missed in this chapter; did you have more questions? Contact me or comment below. Thanks, friends!

What Should Writers Add to their Newsletters?

April 23, 2019 · 2 Comments

I hope you got the chance to read my post about why writers should start a newsletter. At the end of the day, the choice is yours on how you want to build your author platform. A lot of authors find success in using email as a way to truly reach their audience.

If you’ve decided that it’s time to start a newsletter, then it’s time to plan. For starters, what should you send to your readers? What will keep them reading? What will convert email readers into book readers, am I right?

Here, I’m going to share some of your options. At the end of the day, you can share so many different things but this list is meant to get you started.

Author Updates

I used to write Monthly McGruder Updates here on the website. Now, I save most of these updates for my newsletter. I’m still going to talk about updates on social media through my Let’s Get Real posts, but I’m using my newsletter to give my audience a heads up on my writing process. Where am I in the publishing process? Do I have a title for my WIP? Do I need beta readers? Do I have a release date?

Remember, you can assume that your audience WANTS these updates from you because they gave you their contact information. Until they unsubscribe, you can assume that they want to hear first about your updates.

Giveaways, Sales, or Discounts

Let’s be honest: our book budgets cry every time one of our favorite authors publishes their latest reads! We wish we could buy every book in the world. And thus continues the arm wrestle between getting our books in every hand while putting food on the table.

Your audience absolutely wants to know if your books are on sale. Since this is an exclusive list of fans, give them the juicy details. How long can they expect to enjoy the sale? Do you give them a head start so they have more time?

Finally, give them a discount that draws them to the newsletter or makes them happy to stay on your list. For example, I have a discount for my editing services for anyone on my email list. I usually end my newsletters with a regular reminder to encourage them to work with me.

Exclusive Chapters or Content

But wait, giving things for free sucks. We don’t want to provide any free labor, right? Absolutely.

Think of exclusive content as a strategy to turn email readers to book readers. If I can get a free chapter of a book, I’m more likely to want to know how the story ends. I’ll also be more acquainted with the author’s style. Maybe I can’t buy her book now, but it’s definitely going on my TBR/budget list.

Consider providing access to the prologue or first chapter of your books that are already available to buy. Or, provide the first chapter of your WIP. It’s a simple way to get some beta reader feedback. This is priceless tactic for feeding your creative writing and priming your readers to be excited for your upcoming release.

You can either put the chapter right in the email or you can have a link to a website where they can access the content. If you’re starting off with less than 100 subscribers, you may want to reshare your content as you build momentum. There’s no reason to share all your best work too early in the game.

Access to Popular Posts

There’s no sense in writing amazing content if no one’s going to enjoy it! If you wrote an A+ blog post a year ago, you can keep sharing it!

For popular posts, I send this as a separate post. I use the title and email to explain what the reader will glean by reading the post. I try to show how the post is relevant to a problem the reader would like to solve. Then, I provide easy access to my website where they can read more.

This is a great way to reach out to your audience and meet their needs. You will have to determine who your target audience is in order to know which posts to share or how to relate that content to them.

Still Stumped? Ask for Feedback!

Your email list will look different from mine; if I write fantasy YA novels and you write horror novels, the difference is already dramatically apparent. You’ll want to provide what your readers want to learn or receive.

If you’re feeling discouraged, ask for help. You can create a survey or poll and let the people tell you what they want to see. Some writers set up a $5 Amazon gift card giveaway for their survey participants and it works.

Also, take a look at your inbox. What kind of content draws you to sign up for more emails? What do you wish you could see in your inbox? Open someone else’s newsletter and see what they’re doing. How would you do it differently? See if you can incorporate those ideas in your own newsletter without totally copying someone else.

Give Yourself Time to Learn & Grow

Even with my current newsletter insight, I still don’t have 50 email subscribers. This is after a year of writing emails.

I could be upset and compare myself to others, or I could remind myself that I’m playing a long game. It worked for my social media following and I know it’ll work for my email list. I’ve learned more about what my fans want to see, I know my voice, and I know which marketing principles work for me in this time of my life.

Also remember that not everyone will even see your newsletters. If you’re posting amazing things, remind folks that you’re about to share the newsletter or that it already sent. Sometimes you have to do this while starting out. I know it’s frustrating but not everyone reads all their emails perfectly.