A few new developments are happening at Windsor Hill Publishing, all related to marketing—the most disliked word in fiction writing. Writers write because they have to; once the bug bites them, they keep writing until they drop dead (some do), before doing anything else like eating or having sex. I mean it. Look at the writers out there; they clearly aren’t eating.
But when it comes to shilling their work, we writers fall on our faces—smack. So we are attacking this marketing thing one step at a time, an old, old dog learning new tricks. We are deep into Amazon ads, scary, but so far, so good. Hundreds of experts will gladly take your coins to teach you, but this dog needs to understand what it all means—again, so far, so good. Thank goodness for YouTube videos.
The next marketing frontier to conquer is the vast world of Facebook, Instagram, and a dozen others. I will let you know what is best for ROI (return on investment).
Last year, after leaving a well-known publisher on my terms, I refreshed my covers, developed a strong visual identity and branding for the five different series, and made a big push with the new mysteries we published over the past year. Here are a few before-and-after examples. Look to books on the right side for the new, updated covers.
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| The old cover |
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| The new cover |
I am working on a new Sheriff Jordan Tynes modern western. She has become my greatest seller (by double and triple factors). While I would love some love for my other characters, it’s delightful to learn how much people enjoy these stories. Other ideas are in development.
My other characters are demanding to be read and heard: Detective Tony Alfano is losing patience, Sharon O’Mara, the other redhead in my life, wants more time, and Alex Polonia wants to continue taking on the world and stop injustice. And what would WWII be like without Max Adler and Sophie Norcross? Many stories are in outline and even started – unfortunately, they don’t make the hours longer.
I have been participating in a few book clubs and presentations, and as always, I would like to do more. I can be reached via email at rpd@lmi.net.
I have a dear friend with whom I’ve been working on producing his memoir. Claude has had a wonderful, if not enjoyable, life. But at 94 years old, his story, like many others, might have been lost if he hadn’t sat down and written it. It is a classic Horatio Alger story. He and his family escaped Nazi Germany in 1938, and they had to sell everything to the Nazis to leave. His story is an American story of Love, Sex, & Economics. It is available on Amazon (here).
All the best and have a great summer.
Gregory C. Randall
