Page 9 - 2021.1221.The Passionate Plotter Guidebook Four.Marketing Matters_Neat

Diana Kathryn Plopa
THE PASSIONATE PLOTTER: MARKETING MATTERS

cast on his face from the light of his tablet made
his story spookier. The effect was fantastic!

Select a piece that draws readers in, builds
a little tension or comedy, and then leaves them
with questions. Make it about five to eight
minutes long. That’s about the attention span of
a room full of strangers who are eager to go
book shopping. You want them to listen to your
reading and think, “I need to buy that book to
find out what happens next.” Make sure the
selection you read is one of your favorites, not
someone else’s. Read what you love. If you do,
your audience will recognize the passion you
have for writing, and they’ll be more interested in
buying your book. Share what you love, and
others will come to love it, too.

Don’t give away the ending or other
critical plot points. If you tell readers the end, or
give away a big piece of the puzzle, they’ll have
no reason to read the book. Sure, they’ll have a
nice afternoon listening to you read, but they’ll
walk away with no incentive to buy. So dangle
morsels of happiness, but don’t give them the
whole cake. If you write poetry or essays, choose
a few shorter
pieces that invoke
thoughtfulness and
emotion, to offer
listeners a good
sample of the
variety of your
work.

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