YA Author Sarra Cannon has been one busy author. Like many self-publishing writers, she’s learned how to balance her writing time with the publishing and marketing work that is a major part of launching her eBooks herself. She recently took a break from her busy schedule for a Facebook chat in which she shared her tips on writing, marketing and publishing.
How do you start writing your books?
I always start with a stack of blank note cards. I like to write down any scenes that come to my head, even if they’re out of order. Once I have a good feel for the tone of the story and the main scenes, I just start writing and let the story go where it wants to go.
You have multiple active series and write across different genres. How do you decide which series to work in at any time? How difficult is it to finish writing a book in one series and then switch to another set of characters and worlds?
This has been a huge challenge for me this year. When I first started self-publishing, I stuck to one series and only wrote that. Once that series was finished, I had so many ideas, I started several series at once. I don’t recommend it!! It’s hard to switch POV types and genres. However, I recommend writing the story that grabs you the most.
Whatever you’re most looking forward to writing is the one you should write. There’s no substitute for passion and readers will catch on and respond to that more than they will anything else!
What do you think authors should do before they publish to best prepare themselves for success?
I think the number one thing every author should do first is make sure they have the very best book they can write. Make sure it’s edited, proofread, and as error-free as possible. Find a critique group or an editor or even a friend you trust to read through the book and give honest and professional feedback.
I also have a list of things you need to gather up before you’re ready to publish. You can find it on my site here.
When you write – which comes first for you – a story idea or a character?
It’s almost always just a tiny flash of a story idea. Then, when I sit with it for a while and start to explore the idea, the characters start to come to me.
Then when I get a good hold on a character (usually the main heroine), it becomes all about her. My first idea for Beautiful Demons was just an orphan girl who solves mysteries at her high school using magic. Then boom, I got the idea for Harper and the story took off.
What has been your biggest lesson learned throughout your self-publishing career?
#1 lesson, hands down, is to stop comparing myself to other authors. It’s so tough when you see people doing better. It can lead to a lot of self-doubt. The best thing you can do for yourself is focus on what you do best, the stories you love to tell, and let the rest of it go.
You had five new releases in one year! How do you get so much done?
As a new mom, it’s tough to find time to market and write, but I find writing sprints to be the very best way to focus my writing time. I set aside 15-20 minutes when I can to sit down and focus completely on my story. Those small chunks of time really add up.
How do you market your book?
There are so many great ways to get your books in front of readers such as offering free copies to bloggers to review, running ads at different sites and being active on Facebook and Twitter. The BEST way to market, in my opinion, is to keep writing. The more books you have, the more likely people are to find you.
I think in future months, it’s going to be more and more important to cross-promote with other authors. I recently did an event called The 12 NA’s of Christmas where 12 New Adult authors all wrote Christmas stories and cross promoted them. Also, I just joined a new group called Red Door Reads, which is a group of Indie authors writing in different genres all working together to get our books out there. These are exciting and fun ways to make friends and market your books.
Since Marketing and discoverability are always on people’s minds when it comes to self-publishing, one major tip is to create a mailing list that you link to in the back of your ebook. If people read and enjoy your book, it’s important to make sure they have a way to find out about your next new release! Starting a mailing list at a site like Mailchimp is something I would do right from the start.
If you could go back in time and choose whether to self publish or go the traditional route, would you still choose self publishing? Why?
No doubt I would still self-publish!! I know it’s a very personal decision, so I applaud anyone who has the guts to get their books out there, no matter which way they go.
But self-publishing was most definitely the right choice for me. I love having complete creative control and such direct access to my fans. It’s been a dream come true and it really suits my personality. (<— control freak)
What are your plans for the upcoming year for books?
I’m so excited about 2014. I’m going to be focusing on 2 series – the Eternal Sorrows series (which starts with Death’s Awakening), which is a post-apocalyptic zombie novel with witches AND the spinoff series to my YA Demons series. Book 1 is titled Emerald Darkness and should be coming early in 2014. So excited to write that book!
How do you come up with character names? Stacks of baby books, current TV shows, friends family, what’s your source?
I definitely am a baby book addict! I scour names there. I am also an online gamer (EQ2, hehe) and love to write down any cool and unusual names I see there! I also love to ask fans for name suggestions!
How do you curb your social media time so it doesn’t eat away at your writing time?
That’s a great question, and a place where I suffer, to be honest. I set timers. Focus Booster is a really great free timer and I’ll set 20 minute timers and then give myself a 5 or 10 minute break for email and social media.
What’s the number one thing self publishers need to know in order to publish their work?
Knowing how to write and figuring out where to self-publish or how to format – those things are all important. But in the end, believing in yourself is one of the most important things. If you believe in your stories, that passion will show and readers will respond!
What’s your process? Do you write best at night? Do you have a daily word count?
I have tried so many times to stick to a daily word count. Life would be easier if I could do that! But I tend to be the kind of writer who has passionate weeks of writing and others that are almost dead. I almost always write late into the night and my very best writing is done when I can dedicate 24 straight hours to writing through the night.
My most recent overnight “writeapallooza” I got 17,000 words. I love writing like that because I can get so immersed in the story!
Do you do your own graphic designs? If so, how did you learn?
This is something I always need help with and one of the only places where I spend money. I have two amazing cover artists. Robin Ludwig Design Inc. did all of my YA book covers for the Demons series and Okay Creations did my New Adult romance covers.
Robin also did all of the graphics on my website. I think it’s one of those things that you CAN learn if you have an eye for graphics, but you have to be very careful and I would suggest getting a lot of honest feedback from friends and other authors. Covers are so important. You want to make sure they look as professional as possible.
I love how branded all your stuff is. Can you talk a little bit about how you went about doing that?
I know I keep mentioning her but my cover designer Robin was really amazing in helping me learn to brand my covers. It’s so important to have covers that a reader can immediately tell are part of the same series. Sometimes all you’ll get is a glance, so I recommend having elements on each cover that are the same, but not making them exactly the same. The same model. The same layout. But also mixing it up so they are slightly different.
When writing about the paranormal, how do you do your research?
Is it bad to say I use a lot of movies/TV and novels for research? I always start there, getting ideas about what’s been done before and what the public is familiar with. Since I write about witches, I also like to spend some time in the library looking at books of spells or books on witchcraft, just to get some ideas!
Sarra has some great tips for writing and for self-publishing. Which one will you try?
