[Podcast] Emily Enger on Good Enough Book Marketing for Fiction and Creative Writers

“You need to hire a PR firm.”

“You need a large social media following.”

“You need to appear on radio and TV.”

Book marketing is overwhelming. Hop onto Google and you’ll find hundreds of lists enumerating what a writer needs to do to market their book. It can be exhausting. You have to juggle book writing, your career, personal life, and now, book marketing. Who has the time?

Emily Enger of Good Enough Book Marketing is here to reassure new authors you don’t have it do it all. And reclaim ‘good enough’ from hustle culture. 

A Marketing Approach That Fits Your Lifestyle

So much of book marketing advice targets nonfiction authors. From awkward newsletters that isolate fiction writers to blog posts that fail to connect with audiences, nonfiction book marketing techniques fall flat. In Emily’s words, “It’s harder to market creative writing.”

It’s harder to find your ideal audience. It’s harder to talk about yourself without feeling Imposter Syndrome. And it’s harder to know your marketing angle when each book is a different story.

How can fiction and creative writers market their books?

Emily has the solution. She designed a book marketing method that fits into your lifestyle so that you can spend more time in your creative headspace. Her approach: minimalist book marketing.

The Basics of Minimalist Book Marketing

Minimalist book marketing for fiction and creative writers requires two things: regularly getting new visibility, and maintaining your current relationship with your fans.

That’s it!

But Emily reminds writers you have to do both. You can’t drop one or the other.

It’s important to cater to your current fanbase. They’ve followed you since your first book, or since you started publishing stories or poems in publications. They’re loyal to you. They’ve most likely reviewed and recommended your writing to others. So they deserve your attention. New fans are also important. They allow your following to grow, and they help you extend your reach.

You may be thinking, How do I market my book to new and old fans? One of the best ways is through social media.

Most people hear “social media” and start sweating. They think a social media presence requires too much time and effort to maintain. Emily disagrees. She believes you can use social media occasionally as a tool for fun.

Social media is a simple and easy way for your fanbase to see your personality. Share the themes of your book, which characters you relate to, why you chose the setting of your book.

You’ll also want to share more personal details. Your fans are curious about you. They want to get to know you. Think about the causes you support, your hobbies outside of writing, or even your personal writing journey. What are you willing and able to share with your fanbase so that they can connect with you? This all relates to your personal brand.

As you create a social media presence, you’ll want to pay attention to your voice. Just like books have a distinctive voice and tone, your marketing should have an individual voice. Avoid formalities and monotonous posts. You want your marketing—social media, blog posts, emails, etc.—to be authentic. It should sound like you wrote the material, not ChatGPT.

Social media can seem too tiring or timely. Keep it simple. Occasional social media posts won’t soak up your time. And it’s a simple and easy way to connect with your fanbase.

Need-to-Know Strategies

When it comes to book marketing for fiction and creative writers, Emily provides a simple formula:

Existing Reach + Investment in Marketing + Quality of Writing = Good Enough Book Marketing

Combined, these three pieces can improve your book sales. Let’s break these down.

Existing Reach

Your existing reach—also known as your network—plays a pivotal role in book sales. If your marketing goal is to sell five hundred copies (an attainable goal, according to Emily!), then you need to have at least five hundred people to market your book to. Think about your following. How many acquaintances will be interested in buying your book? Will they refer your book? Is your current network sustainable for your copies-sold goal?

Investment

Existing reach is just one part of the formula. The second part is investment. To reach your sales’ goals, you have to be willing to invest in good marketing. Emily recommends two strategies to invest in: features and trade reviews.

A trade review is a book review that comes from prestigious magazines, newspapers, or influential people. Magazines such as Publisher’s Weekly, Kirkus Review, Booklist, and Library Journal represent a few prestigious book review opportunities. Trade reviews are an investment. And they won’t immediately bump your book sales.

Trade reviews have a different purpose. They improve the merit of your book’s quality.

Part of your long-term book marketing strategy should focus on getting your book into the hands of booksellers and librarians. These people will then market your book to a wider audience. But to get your book into their hands, your book must be creditable.

For Indie writers—aka, self-published authors—readers are skeptical of your writing. Trade reviews will give your book needed credibility. It proves to readers and booksellers that your book is well-written. And it’s one of the few ways booksellers and librarians will show interest in carrying your book. 

Another way to invest in your book marketing is to seek a feature in a book discovery service. Companies, like BookBub, rely on email marketing that targets readers of specific genres. Readers subscribe to these email lists to learn about new books. They want new books to read. And that new book could be yours!

Features or ads in book discovery services can drastically improve your book sales. Emily says most people who end up on bestseller lists market through this strategy. Combine a positive trade review with a feature in an email blast, and you’ll see boosts in your sales!

Quality of Your Writing

The final—and most important—piece to Emily’s formula is the quality of your writing. The only way you can effectively pursue minimalist book marketing is if your book is good. It has to be well-written. The characters have to be complex and nuanced. The plot has to be fully developed. Your book must have a strong narrative arc.

We all like to believe our books are well-written. That our plots and characters are fully developed. But you will never know if your writing is good enough until you have it professionally reviewed. (And reading books on writing doesn’t cut it!)

Just like traditionally published books that are edited and proofed, self-published authors need to invest in professional book editing and feedback.

Emily also encourages writers to either join a writing mentorship program or seek help from a professional book coach. You want someone who will provide genre-based feedback. Someone who is good at writing and knows your genre. It’s the only way to determine if your book is actually well-written.

Minimalist book marketing for fiction and creative writers requires reach, investment, and good writing. Put in the effort to write a good book and you won’t have to waste time and stress on intensive marketing—which may not be good-enough after all!