Author branding and why it matters.

Who are you? Creating an author brand is the best way to help guide your career. Not only does an author brand

help you to develop how everything you do looks and feels but it also makes you think a bit more deeply about what’s a good fit for you in general.

Some of you may think you should have finished a book before you do this. But you'd be surprised at how important developing this part of your life is before you release your book. In the last newsletter I mentioned that this edition of my BluePrint Self-Publishing Class might come across as more advanced. But in reality, working out certain logistics such as author branding will be MUCH easier before hand. When I first started out in 2013 (long before I released The Girl with the Hazel Eyes) I realised just how many parts of this thing I’d gotten wrong. Here are the top three things that developing my author brand allowed me to do that made my life easier (and sell more books):

1. My website - The current iteration of www.calliebrowning.com didn’t come about by chance. I did no less than four versions before finally settling on that version. I’m not a closet web-developer by any means and I assure you that my website skills are basic at best. But having an author brand made it easier to decide how my site should look and what should be on it. Here are three reasons why websites are necessary. One, they’re an important hub for ALL of your  information. Two, websites can help you sell LOTS more books. Three, it legitimises you as a serious author; people treat you seriously if you act seriously. Don’t tell yourself it’s hard. If I can build my own website, so can you. I’ll give you easy guidelines for how you can build your own website and use it to help grow your brand and your readership.

2. My newsletter - I can write and distribute a newsletter in 30 minutes. Do a quick online search and every author will tell you that having a newsletter is a must-have tool in your arsenal. But if you don’t know what to tell people about, then odds are, your newsletter won’t be that great and people won’t read it. If you do it well enough, that half hour will not only help you build a loyal fanbase but it will also be an invaluable sales tool. In my course, I help you figure this out by showing you three key tools you need to make your newsletter the best it can be.

3. My social channels - These are your day-to-day assets and managing these effectively will make a massive difference. I always see an uptick in sales when I post. It’s because I’ve figured out how to develop content that moves the needle. When we begin class, I'll show you what works and what doesn't.

In the advanced edition of my course, we’ll look at social media curation, author brand development, websites, finding new readers, marketing, newsletters, networking, data analysis and planning. Even if you’re just starting out this course is a critical component of your author journey. Why? Think about the blueprint of a house. You need to know what the roof looks like so the foundation can support the weight of it. This course helps you to think further down the road so that when you start to develop your branding and author strategy that you can make sure you stay consistent to help you maintain and grow your readership.