Almost two years ago an agent said she liked my work, said it was interesting, but because I was a first time book author I would need to build a “platform”. So I found out what a platform was: the author’s preexisting popularity and potential customer base which tells the agent whether the book is worth taking on.
Then came the all-important question – HOW does one build a platform? More searching gave me the following list:
Be (or become) an expert in your field.
Establish a strong online presence via an author website, a blog, and social networking.
Write articles for major commercial magazines.
Be approached as an expert source for other people writing about your subject.
Offer seminars and establish yourself as a speaker.
Hire a publicist who can help with media exposure.
Not too long ago I contacted an author who’s about my age, with a not dissimilar memoir, not a celebrity, and without a huge portfolio of published work to his credit, and I asked him how he got published (his memoir rocketed to the top of both the LA and NY Times’ Best Seller List). His reply?
“I knew a vice president at Disney who convinced the agent to take me on. Together they helped me with my memoir and then sold it to Harper Collins who then arranged television, radio, and print exposure for me.”
Funny – that advice I got about getting on Oprah doesn’t seem so much a joke now.
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