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Welcome to Season 5 of The Book Marketing Action Podcast with Becky Robinson, where we give you information you can immediately implement to increase your influence and market your books more successfully.
In this episode, Becky talks to Julee Balko—Freelance Writer and Author of The Things We Keep and The Me List. Throughout the episode, Julee offers valuable book marketing tips, emphasizing the importance of a positive attitude towards social media and how it can serve as an empowering tool for authors. She also delves into the mindset shift she made from marketing her first book to marketing her second book, highlighting the significance of finding joy and creativity in the book marketing process.
Key Points From This Episode:
[01:05] Julee shares about herself, her work in the world, and her two fiction books.
[02:28] Julee reveals when she started to build an online presence and how that contributed to her author journey.
[03:49] When Julee started building her presence on Twitter (X), did she invest in any other marketing initiatives? She reveals the answer.
[5:00] Julee talks about the process of writing her first novel, The Things We Keep, and how it helped her navigate the grief and loss she was experiencing at the time.
[05:56] Julee explains how long it took her to write her second novel compared to the first one.
[07:19] Learn more about Julee’s second and most recent novel, The Me List.
[08:02] Julee discusses the marketing experience of both of her books and which aspects became easier the second time around.
[10:00] Julee provides information about editorial reviews.
[10:36] (AD) Learn about our Book Marketing Strategy Live Course.
[12:08] Julee talks about her mindset shift and her new approaches when marketing her second book.
[13:44] Discover how Becky’s book, Reach, helped Julee think differently about book marketing.
[15:00] Julee reveals that she is working on her third book and shares about her progress.
[15:56] Julee shares some of her best book marketing tips for fiction authors and elaborates on her experience publishing her novels through the small press.
[20:00] Learn more about what a Me List is and how you can get started writing your own.
Action Steps:
- Whether you are a nonfiction author or a fiction author, stop to think about your attitude toward marketing. Is there a way you can shift your approach in order to bring you more joy and inspire creativity as you connect with your online audiences?
- Craft your own Me List. Email it to becky@weavinginfluence.com or share it on social media, tagging Becky and Julee!
Resources:
- Explore Julee’s website.
- Order your copies of The Things We Keep and The Me List.
- Follow Julee on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Threads.
Key Quotes:
I thought, one day, I’m going to write a book and use grief as a theme so that anybody going through it wouldn’t feel alone. —Julee Balko
I wanted my content to be inspiring to me, too. —Julee Balko
I started looking at social media as a creative outlet, and that kind of changed everything. —Julee Balko
I’m a writer who writes right from the heart, so I wanted my social media to come from the same place. —Julee Balko
I am reaching more people just by being a curious, creative person. —Julee Balko
There are a few authors who have just gone bananas selling right now, and it all started with them being authentic on social media. —Julee Balko
When you’re looking at small presses, definitely ask about the marketing aspect because no book can make it on its own without some help. —Julee Balko
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Read our latest article based on key takeaways from this episode.
Explore our archives! Listen to Becky’s five favorite episodes:
- Episode 125 with Michael Bungay Stanier
- Episode 121 with Juliet Starrett
- Episode 112 with Clint Pulver
- Episode 108 with AJ Harper
- Episode 106 with Jane Friedman
I am the founder/CEO of the Weaving Influence team, the author of Reach: Creating the Biggest Possible Audience for Your Message, Book, or Cause, and the host of the Book Marketing Action Podcast. I’m a wife and mom of three kids, and I enjoy running, reading, writing, coffee, and dark chocolate.