Saturday 16 January 2010

Creating a Blog Splash

Writers are always looking for new ways to get their books noticed, to generate an audience and the word-of-mouth buzz I was talking about in my previous post. I'm guessing the fact that you're reading this means that you may have a blog of your own whether you're a writer, reader, bookseller, publisher or other person involved in the whole business of books.

Author and blogger Fiona Robyn (author of The Letters and The Blue Handbag) has come up with an innovative idea to generate publicity for her new novel Thaw. Starting on the 1st of March next year she's going to blog it so that peole can read it, free, online. The novel follows 32 year old Ruth’s diary over three months as she decides whether or not to carry on living.

To help spread the word she’s organising a Blogsplash, where blogs, including mine, will publish the first page of Ruth’s diary simultaneously (and a link to the blog).


I think it's a really innovative idea. Not only does it generate reader traffic for her blog (and those of the others involved) but it's using the blog network to give people access to the new novel rather than relying on readers' (notoriously subjective) reviews after the book is published.


She’s aiming to get 1000 blogs involved – if you’d be interested in joining in, email her at fiona@fionarobyn.com or find out more information at http://www.fionarobyn.com/thawblogsplash.htm.




4 comments:

Frances Garrood said...

Alis, this sounds like a really good idea. My problem is that I'm only semi-lterate computer-wise, and setting anything up, even a link, is (at the moment) the kind of thing I have to get a son to do (if there's one around, otherwise I have to pay someone). Pathetic, I know. But - if I become more competent, I'd be really interested in this scheme. I wish Fiona Robyn every success with it.

Alis said...

Hi Frances - that's the trouble with new technology - there's not only the using of it there's the manipulating of it. However, linking in this case needn't be a problem as long as you can copy and paste. If you copy the relevant paragraphs from my post and paste them into your blog, the links will go with the text so you don't have to put any links in youself. 'Simples' as the meerkat from the advert says, making me laugh like a fool every time!

Frances Garrood said...

Thanks, Alis. I'll give it a go. Oh - and we just LOVE that meerkat advert (the one we really can't stand is the Harvey's furniture one which heralds Coronation Street, but I don't suppose readers of this blog watch C S...)

Alis said...

I must admit, I sometimes think the adverts are better than the programmes...