How a Debut Indie Author Got 6.5k Preorders + More Marketing Sparks
And success through cosplay, confidence, consistency
Quick, no pressure insights and inspiration to help you push past perfectionism, stay true to your vision and market your work authentically.
Book marketing can feel like a mystery.
Run ads? Post daily? Shout into the void? Hope your book magically spreads on its own?
In all honesty, there’s no one right way to do it. But there are strategies that have worked for others and might provide a spark that helps you find your groove.
How to Do Indie Book Marketing
I’m always a little jealous of how Jacque Aye finds unique, fun ways to market her books. Think cosplay, creative photo shoots, and building real community around her stories.
Marketing doesn’t have to be stiff or boring. It can be an extension of your creativity.
If you want more inspiration from Jacque, you can learn more about her background and work from my interview series.
How a Debut Indie Author Marketed Her Way to 6.5k Preorders
Anne Knight has a great thread about how a debut indie author pulled in 6.5k preorders for her first book.
Even though the book itself was a disappointment, the marketing worked. That makes it worth studying.
Here are Anne’s key takeaways:
Post consistently so your book stays visible
Use jaw-dropping visuals to grab attention
Show enthusiasm and confidence in your work
Check out Anne’s full thread for the rundown.
Stop Worrying About Annoying People With Your Content
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Dustin The Industry Plant’s TikTok explains how a musician went from 10k to 140k monthly listeners on Spotify. How did he do it? By posting about the same song multiple times a day.
A few videos went viral, which boosted the Spotify algorithm, and led to massive growth.
So stop worrying about annoying people with your marketing. Most people won’t even see your posts. Eventually the right ones will.
What’s sparking your creativity? Let us know in the comments.
The strategies are likely the same for musicians. To me, what’s absolutely the most important part of a pitch and delivery, is maintaining the trust. Fantastic that the author marketed really well (I must go explore your linked article to find out more), but the fact that so many supporters were dissatisfied with the quality tells me that there was a layer of dishonesty with the marketing. Or maybe the product wasn’t accurately described. It’s such a shame, but that person likely won’t have the trust built into their audience for any future endeavor. What do you think?
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