How Authors Can Grow an Audience Before the Book Is Written

When I tell authors that they need to start growing their audience as soon as they start writing their book, they look at me like I’m crazy. 

They often reply with, “How can I do that when I don’t even have a book?” 

We often just associate marketing with selling our book. But we can’t just appear out of nowhere online and expect people to automatically buy our book. We have to introduce ourselves and lead people to know, like, and trust us and what we have to say. 

Modern marketing is simply connecting with people who are interested in the same things that we are interested in. The keyword here is connection. And you don’t need a book to sell in order to do that. 

When you can connect with someone as another human being who has similar interests, life experiences, struggles, and hobbies FIRST, they will be much more attentive and receptive to learning more about your book. 

When you already have someone’s attention and they know, like, and trust you, your promotions will be much more productive and successful. 

So how can authors do that? How can we begin to build an audience even before the book is finished? Here are seven tips to get you started. 

Make a Mindset Adjustment 

It’s time to take your author business hat off and not look at these connections purely as a means to sell your book. You are interacting with new friends who are interested in the same things that you’re interested in. When we make that initial approach from a different perspective, it makes it easier for you to create more genuine posts that aren't just self-promotional, which in turn boosts that connection you’re looking for. 

Identify Your Ideal Reader 

Here I am talking about your ideal reader again! You might be wondering how you can have an ideal reader when you haven’t written your book yet. Remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect or set in stone - sit back and think about the person that you want to read your book. Jot down details about this person - maybe it’s a reflection of yourself, maybe it’s a friend or family member, or maybe you’re making them up. Take a few minutes and start to outline who this person is. If you need some help doing that, you can download our free Book Marketing Blueprint or listen to episode three of our Book Marketing Simplified podcast for some help. 

Think About Connection Points 

What are your interests? What do you like to do in your free time? Make a list of what you would like to talk about and what you’re interested in. Then note which ones intersect with your ideal reader’s interests. When we share details about our lives and invite people into the conversation, connection begins to take root. When it comes to social media, we want to follow others that we identify with. This is a great way to get the ball rolling. 

Identify Themes in Your Book

There are several ways to talk about your book without actually talking about your book. When we identify topics, locations, situations, themes, or struggles that our book will cover, we can start to draw people in to what our book is about without going into a lot of detail. Heck, we don’t even need to say that it’s a part of the book! When we can identify topics that we include in our book we can start early conversations that will give you great insight into your readers, but it will also create a solid connection. 

Reach Out

When it comes to building an audience, the “If you build it, they will come” mentality simply does not work. It’s your job to reach out to people first. How do you do that? By leaving comments on other people’s posts, liking what others are sharing, and getting involved in conversations. As an author, it’s your job to make that initial connection - especially when you’re just starting out. I know that this can be intimidating, but remember that you’re reaching out to people who are interested in the same things that you are, who want to hear from you, and who are eager to connect with others on things they find in common. 

Get Connected Offline

There is so much that you can also do offline that will help you connect with others and build an audience. Reach out to your local library and connect with the librarians, meet your local booksellers, join literary groups, attend a writing conference or workshop, join a bookclub. There are so many opportunities to connect with others locally and get the ball rolling as early as you can. 

Network with Other Authors 

Your fellow authors aren’t your competition, they are your teammates. They understand where you’re coming from and the struggles you’re facing. Connecting with other authors, supporting them and their work, and being their cheerleaders creates a strong network. And they will reciprocate and do the same for you. 

When you put at least a couple of these approaches to work for growing your audience, you’ll start to see your connections snowball. And we all have to start with that small handful of connections before we can build that momentum and get things rolling. So get started now! What are you waiting for? 

If you want to go a step further and get all of the tools, resources, and help that you need to market your book, grow on social media, and sell more books - join The Author Circle membership!