When promoting your book, you always should have a website, send out press releases to bloggers and mainstream media, and arrange book readings/signings to ensure the title is properly promoted. But those aren’t the only things you can do. In fact, they may not be enough. One marketing effort you might want to consider is discussing your book’s topic online.

Quite a number of online forums related to the topic of your book almost certainly exist. You ought to participate in such forums, subtly including a link to your book or website in your signature block. While you don’t want to directly promote your book by talking about it in a shameless plug, you do want to establish yourself as an expert on its subject. As people are impressed by your answers, they’ll naturally look you up just to see how come you know so much. Participation in online forums also is a good way to get a sense of what readers are interested in…which could be fodder for your next book!

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My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. I also offer a variety of self-publishing services. During the past decade, I’ve helped more than 300 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks, four nonfiction hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel Windmill. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.