I've devoted much of my career to helping aspiring authors become published authors. More than that, it's my desire to help them become successful published authors. Here's why: That has been my dream since I was in my early teens.
I understand how hard it can be to achieve that dream. It took me ten years to land my first traditional publishing deal. I self-published a few books in that time but without much success. I tried to build a platform, but I gained followers very, very slowly.
I made a lot of mistakes. I took the long road to success. For the most part, I traveled alone. Once I figured out how to achieve my goal, however, things got much, much easier.
When Writer's Digest Books (WDB) released How to Blog a Book in 2012, it became an instant bestseller and has remained on one of three Amazon Top 100 lists regularly ever since. When WDB released The Author Training Manual in 2014, it also became an Amazon bestseller. And the three e-books I released this past year, Authorpreneur, The Write Nonfiction NOW! Guide to Writing a Book in 30 Days, and The Nonfiction Book Proposal Demystified, also shot to bestseller status.
What did I learn that changed the trajectory of my career? I learned that the trick to becoming a bestselling author is no trick. It has nothing to do with employing faddish promotional tactics. The "secret" lies in the fact that it takes one thing: a marketable book—a book your readers want and need.
Producing such a book can be hard work. The journey is not for those who lack faith or an Author Attitude—willingness, optimism, objectivity, and tenacity. But the dream is achievable.
How do you become a bestselling author? Better yet, how do you create a career from writing bestselling books? You follow this four-step strategy, step by step:
- Craft a marketable book idea. Only ideas that specifically target a market and are unique and necessary both in the market and category sell.
- Write a marketable book. Once you have crafted a marketable idea, you must create a tangible product—a manuscript—that fulfills its promise. It must target the market, provide a unique and necessary addition to the category, and give readers enormous value.
- Promote your book continuously. Promotion begins several years prior to the book's release. This task is called author platform building. With the foundation of an author platform in place, you promote your book upon release and after release by targeting the market and your potential readers with more valuable content.
- Monetize your book. To build a brand and business around the book, you take your concept deeper and provide more value to your readers with products and services related to the book. These can take the form of spin-off books, reports, online and in-person courses, events, podcasts, teleseminars, webinars, Hangouts on Air, coaching, consulting, and membership sites.
This is no quick bestseller campaign. It's no trick or gimmick. It's the foundation of almost every successful author's career. Follow these steps, and you can create a bestselling book—or bestselling books—and a career as a bestselling author.
Learn more about this tried-and true bestseller strategy when you watch my free video series. It explains the four steps above. Click here to watch Or enroll in my new six-month coaching program, Create Your Bestselling Author Career. Registration ends on January 25. Only 15 spots available.
(Photo courtesy of kikkerdirk | stockfresh.com)
Nina Amir, the bestselling author of How to Blog a Book and The Author Training Manual, is a speaker, a blogger, and an author, book, and blog-to-book coach. Known as the Inspiration to Creation Coach, she helps creative people combine their passion and purpose so they move from idea to inspired action and positively and meaningfully impact the world as writers, bloggers, authorpreneurs, and blogpreneurs. Some of Nina’s clients have sold 300,000+ copies of their books, landed deals with major publishing houses and created thriving businesses around their books. She is the founder of National Nonfiction Writing Month, aka the Write Nonfiction in November Challenge, and the Nonfiction Writers’ University. She has had as many as four books on the Amazon Top 100 List in the Authorship category at the same time.