How Do You Market... Fiction?

10 replies
So, other than internet marketing, I also write screenplays. So far, I finished three feature length screenplays and a few months ago, I submitted one of them one of the biggest screenplay competitions in the world.

I didn't expecting much. After all... this was my first competition :rolleyes:!

I found out about a couple weeks ago my spec script made it to the second round, scoring a 72 out of a possible 100 points, placing it...

IN THE TOP 25% OF ALL SCRIPTS SUBMITTED IN THE NATION.

Even this dude's impressed ---> . And he probably can't even read screenplay format!

In order to advance to the third round, I had to score in the "mid-70's", which would have placed my script in the TOP 10%! You could see how close I came.

By the way... I scored a 72/100 despite the fact my script did NOT have one single sex scene :p!

Actually, I'm kind of serious about that last part. The judge wrote in my comments that he was upset and felt cheated that I had the words "A Christmas Love Story" in the title, there was a teenage boy and a teenage girl (well, not "quite" a teenage girl)... yet no romance!

So, anyway, I've decided to take a chance and have my spec script turned into a "novelette" (the judge rated the commercial appeal of my script as 9/10 and said it definitely has a commercial audience) and I was wondering...

Can you use internet marketing techniques to market a novellete? I assume you can't use it for a screenplay since most of the general public cannot read screenplays.

I mean... if this was a "how to" product, you'd have a sales letter, autoresponder, squeeze page, etc...

But other than turning it into a Kindle e-book, what else would you use?

Has anyone ever tried marketing fiction?

Thanks, everyone!
#fiction #fiction book #internet marketing #market
  • Profile picture of the author Mr Anderson
    There is definitely a large market for fiction. Have you every heard of Amanda Hocking? She was the first self-published kindle millionaire. I know there have been several more since then.

    The principles of IM can be used to market fiction just as easily as a non-fiction work. Your main goal should be to build a customer base. Can you turn your screen play into a series?

    Also, consider submitting your work to to Kindle Singles. If you are accepted, you are almost guaranteed to make several thousand bucks.

    Congrats on your success. I hope you have much more in the months to come!
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    • Profile picture of the author Simon Farmer
      Originally Posted by Mr Anderson View Post

      There is definitely a large market for fiction. Have you every heard of Amanda Hocking? She was the first self-published kindle millionaire. I know there have been several more since then.

      The principles of IM can be used to market fiction just as easily as a non-fiction work. Your main goal should be to build a customer base. Can you turn your screen play into a series?

      Also, consider submitting your work to to Kindle Singles. If you are accepted, you are almost guaranteed to make several thousand bucks.

      Congrats on your success. I hope you have much more in the months to come!
      That's some good info right there Mr Anderson, thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Farmer
    Hey David,

    First of all congratulations on the success of your screenplay.

    I actually wrote a screenplay myself about 6 years ago just before I got into IM but I never got around to doing anything with it.

    I would be very interested to know the name of the competition you entered as it might be something I would like to do with mine.

    Secondly great idea on using the IM that we know to market the screenplay.

    Maybe check to see how many searches per month keywords like "new screenplay" or "best screenplay" are getting.

    You never know, maybe producers search the net looking for talent.
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    • Profile picture of the author davidhorph
      [QUOTE=Simon Farmer;8411516]Hey David,

      First of all congratulations on the success of your screenplay.

      I actually wrote a screenplay myself about 6 years ago just before I got into IM but I never got around to doing anything with it.

      I would be very interested to know the name of the competition you entered as it might be something I would like to do with mine.

      QUOTE]

      Hi, Simon...

      It was the PAGE Awards.

      David
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      • Profile picture of the author Fantastic
        Congrats on your results! I started out in the film industry myself...


        You can PM me if you'd like to see my IMDB page but anyways...


        I optioned and eventually sold the rights to a screenplay back in 2008.


        You could always use IM to raise awareness about your script.


        See if it can win any more competitions? If it does...


        Get word out about it. It won't take long for someone to contact you.


        It's just up to you to separate the frauds and phonies from the REAL producers.


        Good luck and congrats on picking an exciting medium to work with!
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        • Profile picture of the author RemingtonSteele
          Have you visited Writer's Cafe at kboards.com? It's a forum for authors (most of them are self-published), and there's a wealth of information over there (a lot of clueless people, too, but I digress).

          Since you've already written the book, I would identify your target audience, find out where they hang out online, and get your book in front of them. I recommend the following WSO for help with this:

          http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...e-weeks.html#1
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          • Profile picture of the author AnniePot
            May I suggest you join the Warrior Forum Kindle Book Club Section? It's managed by Bryan Kumar and contains a ton of information relative to Indie Authors publishing to the Kindle platform.

            Kindle hosts many books that have hit millions of sales, and this private forum has, without a doubt, helped me place my foot on the bottom rung of this ladder.
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            • Profile picture of the author Fantastic
              Originally Posted by AnniePot View Post

              May I suggest you join the Warrior Forum Kindle Book Club Section? It's managed by Bryan Kumar and contains a ton of information relative to Indie Authors publishing to the Kindle platform.

              Kindle hosts many books that have hit millions of sales, and this private forum has, without a doubt, helped me place my foot on the bottom rung of this ladder.

              How have you done in terms of numbers after joining?


              Just curious.
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  • Profile picture of the author ReferralCandy
    OP: Haha, awesome! Congrats on the screenplay success. I smell a star in our midst.

    The challenge in marketing fiction is that it's not a product where you explain the value in a sales letter. It's a lot like selling music- you'll want the art to sell itself. You'll have to give away a chapter for free online, then sell the book as a "if you want to read more..."

    Also you generally want to build a following, a fanbase. You want to create anticipation and authority. I think writers should write short stories and distribute them for free.

    There are some substantial communities of writers all over the internet- Tumblr is one. There's a guy called John Green who sells his books because a quote from one of them (Looking For Alaska) is super popular. (It goes something along the lines of "If people were rain, I was drizzle and she was a hurricane.")

    Lots of people love good writing, so put some of it out there! Give it away for free to bloggers who review books, stuff like that. Build the hype, get the reviews, spread the word in the right places.
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  • Profile picture of the author RyanGillam
    Hey,

    Stick with your script. Head on over to BBC - Writersroom - Homepage and find out how to submit it If they see genuine quality then they will want more.
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