Marketing Tips + Trends + Useful Stuff
These 6 Website Essentials Unlock Your Author Marketing Power
Whether you want to keep it simple with a single-page website or you require multiple pages and complex design, there are six website essentials to include to make your website your most powerful author marketing tool. Below, we list these six essentials and the...
These Self-Editing Tactics Will Make Your Book Better
Many writers tend to write first and edit later. Which can work fine for short pieces. But when writing an entire book-length manuscript this can land you in trouble. You may end up feeling overwhelmed, overburdened and out of time. But by incorporating some effective...
Author Email Lists: Why Have One and How to Use It
Author email lists get talked about a lot, and it’s because they’re a seamless and effective integration of both active and passive book marketing. They allow direct, customized contact with your audience and they’re a built-in, ongoing promotional tool that you have...
5 Book Cover Design Mistakes to Avoid
Designing a great book cover requires skill, knowledge and research. And though there are definite conventions to follow, they're more nuanced than a set of hard rules. And to the untrained eye, sometimes the rules aren’t so clear. Because of this, it's often easier...
What are BISAC Codes: An Explainer for Self-Published Authors
During the publishing process, one of the many things you will need to do as a self-published author is to categorize your book with BISAC codes. These codes are important to get right so that your readers can find your book. But what are BISAC codes and how do you...
Your Book’s Interior Matters as Much as the Cover: What You Should Know
We write a lot on the topic of book covers, from professional standards and genre conventions to the cover design process, but we haven’t written much about what your book’s interior should look like. And the interior of your book is just as important as the...
Passive Book Marketing VS Active Book Marketing: Why They Work Best Together
When it comes to marketing your book, there’s not just one strategy that works best. There are multiple strategies and tactics for both passive book marketing and active book marketing. Below we’ll explain the difference between passive vs active book marketing and...
Connecting with Your Audience Online: Authors and Social Media
Although connecting with your audience online is an important part of your author marketing and branding efforts, social media isn’t the only way to do it. In our recent post we discussed if social media was worth it for authors, and explained how being on social...
Indie Author Resources for Inspiration, Education, and Opportunity
*This post was originally published in January, 2025 but has been updated to add more, alternate resources and more current information on some resources. Although we strive to create content that answers the questions indie authors have and to help them succeed, we...
3 Unique Benefits an Author Website Offers (That Outside Platforms Don’t)
When you’re trying to grow your author platform, being highly visible is the goal. This can mean having a presence in many online spaces. And every little bit helps. But nothing is as powerful as having your own website. Below, we’ll cover three unique benefits an...
A Quality Book Cover is Essential to Your Marketing Success
Many indie authors hope they can skimp on their book cover to save money, time, or energy. But that’s a big mistake. A quality book cover is essential to your book’s success. It won’t matter if your book is great on the inside. And it won’t matter if you put all...
Does Social Media Matter for Authors? It Depends on Your Goals
Does social media matter for authors? Yes and no. It depends on a lot of factors, such as your goals, where else you put your energy, and even your genre and your audience. It seems like there are a million ideas and strategies out there that are all supposed to spell...
Reader Reviews
We publish a weekly blog with marketing strategies, contests, checklists, insider secrets, and more. Here’s what readers are saying.
“Reading Jeniffer Thompson’s Author Branding Updates is like having a friend inside the marketing business telling it to you straight. Every issue is packed with practical strategies, key resources, and professional advice for authors and entrepreneurs of all experience levels. I learn something new in every issue!”
“Wow. Enjoyed reading these tips on simpler and varied content. It made me think more about what I post. I am putting together a chapbook of posts I wrote on coping in the year of the pandemic. I will use some of your ideas to promote it.”