How to Promote Your Children's Book - Katie Davis

I was excited to participate in the promotion of this book. I received a copy from the author to read and review.  What you get here is my honest review.

Promoting my first book was extremely hard and that is probably why it has not done as well as I’d like it to.  I can take the advice in this book and apply it to not only my first book but to the one I have almost finished. Shy by nature, promoting myself and my work has always been an issue.  I am a National Board Certified Teacher.  I missed getting the certification the first time around by nine points.  When my mentor, someone who had been an evaluator in the process looked over my results her words were no surprise.  I missed it because I did not promote myself.  I grew up believing if you did that you were vain and self-centered.  In writing you have to promote yourself whether you are self-published or traditionally published.

Katie’s book takes some of the sting out of what seems like such a daunting process.  I was pleased to see that some of the things I had already done with my first book were things she had recommended in her book. I was also shocked at how much more I could have done. As a teacher, I loved the section on “Teacher’s Guides”. The proper way to use “Social” media is hit on which makes it very relevant to every author and really focuses on the social part of it. When I promoted my first book I was afraid of offending everyone by talking about my book on Facebook.  I had come across people who made it clear they hated and unfriended people who they felt used them just for that purpose. There is a right and a wrong way to use social media.

Another thing that was especially helpful to me was all of the links she included in the book.  This is a book that you need to read with a pen and pad at your side as there will be so much you will want to go back to or check on. Keeping a notepad handy helps.   This book doesn’t come across a stiff how-to manual.  Instead it is more like sitting down with a group of writing friends and discussing ways to promote your book, what worked and what didn’t work.

So how much do I believe in this book?  I have a group of middle school students who participated in NaNoWriMo.  I am going to tell them and their parents that this is the book they need if they are serious about getting their book published.  I am also going to work with them on some of the ideas in the book.  That is how much I believe in this book.

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