How to get noticed in the sea of blogs and websites.

In a work place or school, there are easy ways to get noticed if you are new. Smile at everyone you meet, show your interest in other students and their activities, join a club, show off your skills in fixing computer bugs or wear your Tiffany jewelry. But what about if you are a brand-spanking new author? How do you spread the word that you recently sold a book published online?

Internet. I’ve been told that the web is the most powerful tool a budding or new author can wield. Have a website or start a blog. Blogging, especially if you’re doing it with a group of writers, is a good way to get read. Keep the blog updated and post something interesting that’ll help give a reader reason to come back for more. Many people are talking about the same thing as you—new releases, hot topics, free books, contests, etc. so you need to learn to differentiate. Getting noticed through a website is a long-shot especially when almost every author—published or not—is also taking advantage of this tool. But, there is always that slim chance that a reader will stumble upon your website, click on your book page, read your excerpt and maybe, just maybe buy one of your books.

Having a website or a blog though is only the first step. Readers will not start visiting your site or reading your blogs just because you went live. The internet is like a crowded zoo. One must have a map to find the way to the African Savanna or Tropical Asia. So how do people find their way to your blog?

Join different groups. When I started writing a year ago, someone recommended that I join the Romance Divas. I did. The site is really great and rich with information about everything. Members are wonderful, too. By visiting the Romance Divas, I learned about the existence of different groups as well. Paranormal, Romance, Erotica, Exotic, Contemporary, Young Adult, and Religious yahoo groups are just a few of maybe hundreds of groups online where you can join. This particular group, Romance Writers Community founded by Charlotte Dillon, a group for all writers is a site worth joining. I joined about six yahoo groups, introduced myself and posted the information about my website hoping to attract readers to stop by and take a peek at my website. Now, how many members or readers actually paid attention to my post—I don’t know. Did I sell a copy of my book because I joined a group? I have no idea. How many of them added my RSS on their blog roll? *shrug* Who knows. Are readers online group lurkers or do they prefer promotional sites? Maybe both.

Promotion or advertisement. If you are willing to shell out a few bucks, advertising your book through promotional sites is great. I’ve been using The Romance Studio to promote my books, which I believe helped me sell a reasonable amount of books—for a newbie.

I am sure there are more ways to shout out about your new website, blog, and change of status. How effective they are depends on you.

In this world of writing, if you luck out and hit the combination of luck, perseverance and connections, you have a chance of getting noticed.

Wanna share your secret on how to get noticed? Leave your tip in the comment. If you have a yahoo group you’d like to recommend, website or blog, share it too. You never know who will one day visit you.

Tierney O’Malley