Internet Marketing for online published novel

Congratulations on your book! I applaud your efforts thus far. Here a couple of quick tips before I have to run...

* Do some googling and learn to create a fan page for the book and one for yourself as an author.

* Get TONS of reviews and get those reviews put out everywhere you can. Social proof is the key.

* Do some googling on strategies specific to promoting a book online. Don't just look for "how to get traffic" and the like. Dig into specifics. The info is out there.

Forums, my dear, forums. That's where readers go online. For your niche, I definitely recommend

Share Book Recommendations With Your Friends, Join Book Clubs, Answer Trivia

BTW by "Historical Fiction novel" do you mean historical romance?

There are a lot of communities for this out there, join the forums and get your feet wet first. Don't just jump in and say "hey read my book." Get a few good posts under your belt then modestly post in the "have you written a novel" or "who here has a book?" thread that is always in those types of forums.

That's excellent news to hear about your book! Congrats. I've always wanted to venture into that sort of thing - but, well, IM stole my attention.

You could seek out active reviewers on Amazon - there are some people who have posted hundreds if not thousands of reviews - befriend them and ask them to review your book. You could also join Kindle Boards where you can interact and promote your book and don't forget to send review copies to offline reviewers as well. It may be old-fashioned but a good print review still carries a lot of weight.

I assume that, as you are not going the traditional route, you have decided not to approach literary agents? They could be your conduit to a contract with established publishing houses if they like what they see so you could use this as a calling card although it will have to be submitted in physical form. Also, make sure your book is copy edited, ideally by a fresh pair of eyes. I've had many books published by mainstream houses and still catch mistakes on the final ms even when it comes back from a professional copy editor. Believe me, your readers will notice and comment.

Good luck with it all and well done - that's a lot of words and effort on your part!

Hey Jason,

I would suggest you use Facebook and StumbleUpon to their fullest. On Facebook, participate in related groups, link exchange with other authors in your genre, give away lots of free copies and review copies... Boost your online visibility... Bookmark your website and pages with StumbleUpon.

I also recommend paid advertising with these two sites if you have the money. They are so powerful if you can locate the most effective keywords.

But before playing with FB and SU, you may want to re-up your website and pimp your Facebook page.

Here's a list of review sites you may contact with, and ask for (well...) reviews:
Review Sites | Market My Novel

(The whole market my novel website and their free ebook can give you ideas. I'm not the site owner or their affiliate, it's just one of the sources I've been reading on the subject.)

I've just published a new thriller novel "Emerald" on Kindle, and I'm wodnering about the same problem. You have can have yourself out there, but still people have to find you! For example, there are many books titled "Emerald", so I'm way down the list on the Amazon product pages and if you type in "Brian January", it separates the words and the book is around number 22 on the list.

I just started a blog, a Facebook fan page, and have been going to book lovers' sites, and I'm about to get on Twitter, etc. But how do you separate yourself from the pack, all of whom are doing the same thing?

I have a couple questions.

1. Did you shop this book to any agents before self publishing?

The reason I ask this is if you did why did none take you on? Or did it get shopped around but no one bought it. Self publishing a large novel, and 175k words is big, can be hard because you do not have a following. People are much more likely to buy a small novella from an unknown at a great price vs. paying full price for a large novel. Even if it is the best book ever it is often best to hold back a large novel like that to be publishes later. See Michael A. Stackpole - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and his issues with Talion getting published.

2. Do you have reviews?

IMO you will need reviews and hopefully from real reviewers. But it will be hard to get a self published novel of this size in front of them.

3. Are you giving out sample chapters?

I think this is a must for you. And your first 5(what I would give same as what you would submit to many publishing houses) better draw people in.

4. Have you decided on a price point?

I'm really curious what you plan on charging vs. what I am thinking in my head.

EDIT BELOW:
I just checked out the website and see you are charging $2.99 which is lower than what I would do. Myself I would offer a free version(first 5 chapters or so) and offer a full version for $5.99 or so.

And offer the free version(not just a prequel for free) on Amazon. People may start downloading the free version and it could go viral.

Also I would hire a copy writer to write your summary. It didn't draw me in. I hope your writing itself draws people in more. because with an unknown author you're going to have to really draw them in fast with the free version and the copy on the sales page to get them to go for it. Hell even if your book was free I wouldn't download the full version for free as I am afraid it would not be worth my time. You have to make them beleave the book will be worth their time and worth their money.

Also based on the cover I expect this to be about werewolves. From teh summary I do not think it is. Remember covers matter and they sell the story. The cover and the website make me think twilight clone.

Hope my thoughts help you market the book.