Author platform: make a stand

If you make a living as a public speaker to large audiences, head up a major corporation, pastor a large church, appear on national radio or television frequently, or you’re a regular contributor in The Age or The Australian (for example), then don’t worry about what I’m about to say. You’ve got your platform. If not, then you need to put the time and effort into marketing yourself and building a readership. It has never been more crucial for authors to play a major part in marketing themselves – but it has also never been easier. Where are readers hanging out these days? The internet. That’s the best place for you to find readers for your books.
The internet has levelled the playing field. With a well-written and compelling blog, you have the potential to build a significant platform. If you take the time to research website optimisation and work hard (and smart) on driving traffic on your blog, you can build a sizable audience in a matter of months. Then when you begin to use Twitter and Facebook strategically, you can grow your audience exponentially.
You can, and you must.
I DON’T want to see in your book proposal, ‘I am willing to start a blog and join social networks to market myself.’
I DO want to see: ‘I’ve been blogging for a year, with my readership growing steadily. I use Facebook and Twitter to create relationships with potential future readers of my books, and to drive people back to my blog. I’m currently making contact through the blog and social networks with several hundred (or several thousand) people a day.’
You want to sell a book? Take this seriously. You don’t have to have a television or a radio show (though if you do, that’s great!). You don’t have to be a celebrity. But you DO have to have a good book, and you have to be able to sell it.
It doesn’t cost money. It doesn’t require special skills, besides the ones you already have: those of being a writer. What it does take is time. Marketing yourself as an author will cost you a serious investment of time.
Is it worth it? If being a published author is your dream, then yes. If you plan to make money out of your book, then yes – if you find a publisher who is committed to a return on investment for the author as well as the publisher.

[With thanks to literary agent Rachelle Gardner – some of this material adapted from her blog.]