Sarah Butland, writer, mother, and wife, lives in Canada. Her plan was to write a book for each age group, and she is serious about promoting her work. Her words on marketing are worth a read, and her books, Sending you Sammy for children, Brain Tale – a selection of short stories for all ages, and Arm Farm for adults, are proof that she is a woman of her word.
Some people think it’s crazy to give away your hard earned work. Like a wise woman said to me recently “would you expect the plumber to unclog your toilet out of the goodness of his talent?”
As an author I never imagined I’d give away so much but it’s all in good fun and for many good reasons. The first most unselfish reason is to encourage reading. A huge supporter of literacy in any form, I am always trying to help someone find just the right thing to get them addicted to reading. It doesn’t have to be my first choice or something I’d allow my child to read but anything is better than nothing. For people who don’t want to take a chance on an unknown author by spending even $2.99, free can be the price tag they need to dive in.
In turn, this helps boost the books sales rank. On Amazon, for example, you categorize your book and when you have it listed for free with KDP select it gets put into the Free Kindle Ebooks category but also the specific genre you chose. This helps the book be seen among the greats, even just for a day or two, and you never know who might get a hold of the book.
And then some readers, hopefully most, who downloaded a free copy and love the book feel an obligation to write a positive review and tell their friends.
September has been all about promoting literacy for me and, in turn, marketing my book. It builds confidence as an author in some aspects and has taught me I have a lot to learn in other ways.
Readers should be our best friends, not just our customers. We don’t just want to sell our book we want to form a bond so they feel comfortable providing feedback for our next effort.
I’ve met a lot of readers along the way and for that I’m grateful and if you ever do download something for free and have the time to read it, be sure to let the author and your friends know. That author needs to feed their family and may want to write another book for you someday.
Sarah Butland
Jane Bwye 