Sell Your Self-Published Book the DREAMS Cycle ™ Way

The masterpiece of literature that you just published won’t move off the shelf by itself. You need to let the world know that it is out there. This is where the book launch party comes into play; it was the first major action I undertook to reach my goal of selling 200 copies of my book , Frankenstein’s Science Project . “Moving forward” on actions identified in your action plan represents the first M in the DREAMS Cycle ™ as discussed in previous posts. Publicist, publishers and marketers will tell you that the book launch is the culmination of a sustained effort to market your book before it is available for broad distribution. The Book Launch Party is that fun event that celebrates your accomplishment of having published your book. It is part of a publicity campaign. The book launch party for an author is a bit like a wedding party. You invite all your friends and family to celebrate a major achievement. Here are a couple articles on book launch parties: Writer’s Digest ...

Photo by   Pixabay  from  Pexels When I joined the Ottawa Independent Writers (OIW) in the fall of 2016, I had never heard of a book reading. A few months later, the OIW advertised that they would have a poem reading at the Christmas Party. I am not a poet and I was not available the day of the party, so I missed out on the readings. The next spring, I participated in the OIW Writer’s Workshop. It was held in the beautiful village of Westport, Ontario, right by the lake. During the workshop, there was an evening dedicated to readings. This would be my first reading ever. I selected a flash fiction story, Take It Away Sam , that I had written the previous year and that was published online on the Flash Fiction Press website. When it was my turn to read, I was surprised at how nervous I was. I regularly present in front of audiences of up to 100 for my job, but this was a new context and I doubted my writing and delivery skills. My nervousness brought out some ol...