Romance Anthologies as Opportunites

What I love about anthologies is that a quick shorter story often allows readers to have a taste for a writer's style and voice. I've discovered some great authors by reading anthology books. The majority of anthology books are put out with certain themes in the stories.

            Themes can be anything from military, to creatures, or perhaps even seasons. These themed anthologies present a great opportunity for writers to reach more readers through shorter works. Shorter stories are definitely easier for me to write, so I'm always on the lookout for interesting anthologies where I might submit and allow readers to have a taste of my writing style.

            Most e-publishers will put out anthology collections and do have submissions for these on a frequent basis. The most popular anthologies are often holiday themed, so if you have a Christmas or Valentines story that is ready for publication, consider an anthology.

            The pay for contributing to an anthology is typically much smaller, but the upside is that it will often give your backlist a bump. Also, you never know what larger and more widely read authors you might be sharing the anthology with which can increase sales.

            Should you contribute to an anthology if there is 'no pay' involved? My answer would be no, simply because I believe an author's time and work are of value. There are plenty of romance publishers who will pay a small percentage and are more worthy of your good story. Don't sell yourself short.

I hope this has given you budding authors something to consider on your path to publication. Good luck to you all!

Mary Corrales
http://www.authormaryc.com

Fun Ways to Take On The Dreaded Marketing Beast

What's scarier than Halloween?

Book marketing. *Insert groan here* It's all Facebook this, Tweet that, Google Plus something else, Tumblr over there. Oh and don't forget blog, blog, blog. Here are some more ideas to get you rolling and help you get your name out there without wearing a sign and standing on the street corner.

1) Author Marketing App - This one installs on your Facebook author page. It lets you upload your photo, bio, links, your book covers, and any information about where you're signing. A pretty neat little app for FB.

2) Zazzle.com - Make your own t-shirts! Tired of Team Sparkles and Team . . . um, that werewolf guy? How about a shiny new t-shirt (mug, iPhone case, poster, etc.) with your "team" logo on it? Memes are very in right now!

3) Book excerpts - I saw these in my goody bag at the Ozarks Romance Authors conference in June. Some (obviously dedicated) authors printed their first chapter (or so many thousand words) on paper to make a mini-book.

4) Leave your business card everywhere. Leave it with your waitress (don't forget the tip!). Leave it in library books, bulletin boards of places you seldom visit. Who knows who you'll reach. (Note: My business card has my physical address on it, so maybe you're better off not leaving that one all over the place.)

5) Generate a QR code. You can save it as a .jpeg and put it almost anywhere (refer to #2). This little code will take anyone who owns a Smart Phone to your site, to your Amazon page, or anywhere you want them to go in a flash. Here's a cute idea. Get some of those stick on name badges that say "Hello, my name is" and print your QR code beneath it! 

When I'm not scouring the Interwebz for marketing tips, I'm blogging at Have Novel, Will Edit, goofing off on Facebook, Twitter, and G+.