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Author Resources Page

Welcome to the Chalice Press Author Resources Page!

Thank you for inviting Chalice Press to partner with you in your unique ministry. We recognize that your Chalice Press book is just one of the many ways you share your gifts and ideas with the world, and we wants to be as supportive as possible in lifting up your ministry. We also know that without authors, Chalice Press wouldn’t exist, so thank you for deciding to write down your words to create your book. You put a lot of work into this, and we want to help you make that work fruitful in all the way we can. Thank you for all you’ve already done and all that we will do together. 

Here you will find a number of resources to help you successfully launch your book. Engaging these tactics will help create a robust author platform and marketing plan for promoting and selling the most copies of your book possible.

The Chalice Press marketing team will be walking with you every step of the way (and completing their own set of tactics!), but the more you can do to build and engage your audience and connect with your fans and your fan’s fans as we journey toward your launch date together, the more successful your book launch (and sales) will be!

The Goal

All of these tactics practiced in tandem help you to:

  • establish yourself as a credible expert on your topic with something valuable, perhaps even life-changing, to say
  • increase your online presence and discoverability
  • make it easy for people to find you and your book

Let’s Get Started!

Before we share some specific resources:

Author Headshot - If you don’t yet have one yet, you’ll want to get one taken, one that expresses your personality.  You don’t need to hire a professional photographer (but you can if you’d like), but it does needs to be a professional-looking shot. Get a few different moods (smiling, serious) and angles (headshot and full body shot). Send that to marketing@chalicepress.com.

Author Pages - Create an author page at Amazon and Goodreads (Again, this goes back to increasing your online discoverability.)

“LIKE” the Chalice Press Facebook page, and any other Chalice platforms you’d like! (We’re on FB, IG, Twitter, Linked In, and Youtube.)  When prompted, accept the invitation to JOIN the Chalice Press Authors Facebook group.

Author Website/Blog - required per contract

An author landing page serves you in a number of ways. It’s a place media can find you and learn more about you. It’s a place you can advertise your books and ask for email sign-ups. It’s a place where you can blog regularly and have content to share out on social media and drive more subscribers to your list. You want a website/blog. 

You’ll need to purchase a domain name first, which you can do at a number of sites. Then, you’ll build your website. Wordpress,  SquareSpace,  and Wix.com, are all good places to start. 

Here are some excellent articles to help you build your site:

And here are some great author websites to inspire you (note the effective email sign-up call-outs!):

    Email List

    Every book marketer will tell you that an author email list is the #1 way to sell books. Think about it - people that sign up for your email list WANT to hear from you and are INTERESTED in what you have to say and are MOST likely to buy your book when it comes out. 

    Find an email marketing platform, such as Mail Chimp or Constant Contact, buy a basic package (as little as $20/month), and begin to build your list ... and then start sending great emails. For ideas on what to email about, sign up for other author email lists and watch what they do. When you blog, aim to educate, entertain, and create value. That’s what’ll keep your readers engaged and opening your emails.

    If you’re feeling resistance about email marketing in general, read this: 5 Myths about Email Marketing for Authors.

    Resources:

    Social Media

    Now’s the time to start posting regularly on your preferred platform and engaging and building your social media network. Your goal is to begin connecting with your fans and potential readers, establishing yourself as an expert and credible voice on your topic, and teasing out the book details and eventual launch. The most important period for active social media is 6 weeks leading up to and a month after your book launch. 

    Ideas for Social Media Posts:

    • Book endorsements
    • Creative graphics featuring your book 
    • Quotes from your book (you have a books’ worth of content, so use it for tweets, IG post, FB posts, and more!)
    • Online reviews
    • Video
    • Research/create a list of #hashtags to use with your posts

    Also, we recommend you create an Author Facebook Page, separate from your existing personal profile page. Pages are public-facing, so better for discoverability and allow you to run ads. Plus, it allows you to build a community around your book conversation specifically. 

    Social Media Resources: 

    Graphics 

    Chalice will design social media campaigns and graphics for your book, which you can share on your platforms, but you may also wish to create your own along the way as well.  If you’re not an InDesign or Photoshop pro, you’ll want to know about Canva.com, where you can easily design graphics of all shapes and sizes, for social media, online banners, flyers, postcards, etc.

    Free Photos to Use on your Website, Blog, or Social Media

    Book Launch Team 

    Book Launch Teams have become increasingly popular in a competitive book buying market. These author-recruited teams help create book buzz online and word-of-mouth and guarantee the all-important 25 or more Amazon reviews on launch day, among other things. Here’s a great resource for how to set up and run a launch team.  And here’s a great example of a Launch Team Sign-Up Form explaining what you’ll expect from your team (Credit: Gareth Higgins)!

    Author Videos

    You’ve probably heard that video content is KING right now. We’ll be talking about a book trailer soon, but don’t forget about using video to share book updates or other valuable content with your followers along the way.  FB live events are also a great way to share news (cover reveal, unboxing your first shipment of books, etc), take questions, and interact with your followers who are hungry to hear from you! 

    Here’s an example of a fun and creative book launch video from Tyler Sit (Staying Awake: The Gospel for Changemakers).

    Video Resources:

    Author Events 

    (Copy to come here here about how to approach bookstores, churches, etc about events)

    Here are some links to help you be a great speaker!

    Other Easy Ways to Promote Your Book

    • Ask your church or organization to include your book cover and description in their weekly e-mail blast
    • Promote your book in your email signature - mention the book title, pub date, and create a pre-order hyperlink to Bookshop, or Amazon, etc.
    • Update your FB author photo and cover photo with your book (Canva makes it easy!)

    Author Discount

    As an official Chalice Press author, you’re eligible for a 40% discount on all  books at Chalice Press.  Use the AUTHOR40% promo code at checkout to bank your savings!

    More Book Marketing Resources:

    Book Marketing Folks to Follow:

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