I know you’ve worked hard at writing your memoirs. Hopefully, you found my book, Lifetales: A Workbook for Writing Your Memoirs and that helped you considerably. So, you have found a printer and you’ve had your book printed and bound, but now what to do? Perhaps you have a dozen or 500 books sitting on a shelf or perhaps you’ve gone the digital route and your document is ‘gathering dust’ on your hard drive. If you want people to read your memoir, you’re going to have to either hire someone to market it for you or you’re going to have to market it yourself.

Just beginning to write your memoirs? Download my FREE ebook on Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Lifewriting.

In order to get your memoir out into the world, you need to plan a promotion campaign and sell your book. Here are just a few ideas to get you started.

Get a Review. You are not the only one who has written a memoir. Do a search online or of your local bookstore and find others who have written memoirs. Send them a copy of your book and ask them if they will read your book and write a brief review. Offer to do the same for them. You can send them a physical bound book or a digital copy. I recommend the physical book, though. Another alternative is to contact the memoir author first and ask which they would prefer  – bound or digital. Put these reviews on your blog, on your website, or send them to local papers.

 

Join online networks. If you haven’t done so already, join some of the social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and Google+. These are great ways to connect with not only friends and family, but with a wider audience around the world. Don’t underestimate the power of these sites to sell your memoir book!

 

Get Interviewed. Send a press release to local news agencies letting them know you have written this book and why it would make a good news story. Perhaps Memorial Day is coming up and you have written a memoir about your experiences in Vietnam, etc. Watch for those types of events and try to pitch your book to news agencies at the appropriate time.

 

Set up a professional website. Most self-publishers (and traditional publishers) provide their authors with a website. There are many free sites out there if you know how to build your own website. Look around at other memoir writers pages and get a feel for how an author’s page should look. Check out WordPress.com and Homestead.com for hosting your site – both are very user friendly.

 

Go local. Your first sales are going to be right in your own neighborhood. Talk to local vendors (grocery store, drug store, used bookstore, etc.) and ask if they can sell your book. You will need to offer them a percentage of the sales, but that’s okay! Don’t forget to drop off a few copies (free) to your local library.

 

Find local links in your community. If your memoir is about your town, then contact the local historical society and offer to do a reading or donate a copy of your book. If your memoir centers around a health issue, locate the organizations that deal with that particular health issue and offer them a copy of your book.

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These are just a few tips for getting started. To learn more about writing your memoirs and publishing your memoirs, download the Kindle version of The Lifetales Workbook: A Workbook for Writing Your Memoirs.

The Lifetales Workbook brings in over 20 years of experience of lecturing and teaching memoir workshops. The workbook includes tips on getting started, writing prompts to keep you writing, and tips and resources on book layout, publishing, and marketing your completed stories. Be a part of PRESERVING HISTORY…ONE LIFESTORY AT A TIME!