Newsletter
Let’s face it, I’m scared to try to start a newsletter. Everyone tells me it’s something a writer needs. It’s *the* essential thing that a writer needs after books. I personally wouldn’t join an author’s newsletter, though I have been joined up by people without my permission to theirs and have – if they happened to be someone I knew – been too apathetic or embarrassed to unsubscribe.
I certainly don’t intend to do that with mine. No one’s going on that thing unless they sign up for it themselves.
Which brings me back to fear. My fear is two-fold:
1. Nobody will sign up because nobody is interested.
2. Several people will sign up and then I’ll disappoint them.
The rational thing to do in this instance would seem to be not to try to do it at all, but I’ve just been reading a book on social anxiety, and for getting over your fear they recommend doing the thing anyway and then trying to persuade yourself that it’s not that bad.
So, in the spirit of behavioural therapy, lets do the thing 🙂
You can sign yourself up for my newsletter over here:
http://lists.alexbeecroft.com/mailman/listinfo/newsletter
or you can do it by emailing here
mailto:newsletter-request@alexbeecroft.com
To make this prospect more appealing, I have an Advanced Review Copy of Trowchester Blues available to be given to one random new subscriber. There are only 5 of these ARCs – which are produced to go out to reviewers before the book is given its final proofing – in my hands. I’ve reserved two for giveaways elsewhere, one for me and one for a friend, so this is a fairly exclusive offer. I’ll draw that on New Year’s Day.
I don’t know whether it makes it more or less appealing to know that anyone who did sign on would have free rein to tell me what they wanted to see in a newsletter, because other than news of new releases I’m not sure what people would want to see in there and I’m more than willing to be told. I personally see it working a bit like an email group, with everyone talking to each other, but IDK. What do you think?
Alex I share your fear. I don’t have a newsletter either. I always think if people want to find out what I’m up to then they will follow my blog, plus being a part time writer (and slow with it) I really don’t have much going on to be able to do a newsletter every month, mine would end up being a very hit and miss affair.
Even with my blog I worry that there is nobody out there. I see the stats that show a handful of people pop by but I only have one or two regular commentors. Sometimes I feel like I am shouting into the dark, you know?
*g* It’s awful, isn’t it? The way you’re pushed to make such a performance of yourself, when so many authors write because they don’t really want to be seen. They want people to see their stories and their words, not themselves. I think this idea that we should sell ourselves is a fundamental misconception of what we’re all about. And then we do it badly because we don’t have any time or interest in it, and it’s a constant low level source of guilt and worry. So yes, I feel just like that too.
On the plus side, I tried as an experiment to blog regularly three times a week for most of 2013 and it did *nothing* for sales of my books, so I now feel quite justified at abandoning blogging. I’m trying Twitter and the newsletter now, and I’ll report on whether that’s any better later if you like 🙂
Yes! I totally agree with you.
I hate blowing my own trumpet (I have my yearly appraisal at work today, so I’m going to have to today whether I like it or not) and that’s what blogging/promo feels like to me.
That’s interesting about your sales and the blogging. I’m trying to be a more regular blogger at the moment (twice a week if possible but at least once) but it takes up so much time and planning.
I’d be interested to know how you get on with the newsletter. You’ve got my email…or you could blog about it 🙂
I think the newsletter will have to be a long-term thing. So far none of my books have the sign up info in them, so I’m hoping to get a few more subscribers once Trowchester Blues is out. I really ought to write some exclusive fiction for newsletter members or something. That might be an idea. I’ll definitely blog about it once/if I ever get a grip 🙂