If you haven’t done your pre-work to know what’s out there in the bookstores and on the Internet, you are making a huge mistake. If you don’t have your name, your topic, key phrases registered on GoogleAlerts, you get demerits.

Bookstores, and the people who work in them, can be an asset. For the developing author, experienced bookstore employees can offer some coaching—what’s moving in the store; what colors are popping on covers; what type of books customers are asking for; or what types of problems are customers seeking solutions to?

Pay attention to what’s happening within your genre. Whether it’s in the news; in the blogs; or in your head, be prepared to tweak when needed. What you don’t want to create is something that has become passé.

Authors need platforms. They need to identify where their crowd is. The Internet can be a huge factor. With a few strokes, your may find a viral world that is chomping at the
bit for your info. If you already have a following, you should be teasing them with “glimpses” of what’s to come.

Savvy authors not only let their crowd know that a book is in the works—they start the buzz; and, they begin to take orders before it’s printed. Orders can be taken through your website (yes, you have one or will before your book comes out) or create a flyer that you can distribute wherever you are. When people pre-pay, those funds should be used to offset your production costs.

Source: Show Me About Book Publishing by Judith Briles, Rick Frishman, John Kremer