Marketing with passion

A quick heads up before we jump into the post. I did an interview withe Eve over at Functioning Insanity this week and she asked some killer questions. If you want to find out how I'd fare against the Machine and enter to win a signed paperback, you should stop by.

So...on Wednesday I talked about marketing your book, even when you don't feel like. Especially when you don't feel like it. And I know what you're saying. Sure, Sarah, easy for you to say. You're the one weirdo author out there who actually likes marketing.

And that's true, both that I enjoy marketing and that I'm a weirdo. But even if you don't go gaga fro spreadsheets like I do, you don't have to despise marketing your book. The trick is in finding your passion and and creating a marketing mash-up. Because marketing your book is easier when you don't want to scoop your eyeballs out with a dull spoon.

The first step is identifying your passions outside of writing. Of course, writing is number one. But I'm jumping out on a limb here and guessing you enjoy other activities as well. So make a list. Really, do it right now. It should only take a minute. Jot down all the activities, organizations and what not that you enjoy when you aren't slinging words like a rock star.

Got it? Great. Now you need to find ways that you can incorporate those passions into marketing opportunities for your work. Let's grab a few examples.

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Do you love teaching? Perfect. Propose a course about your genre to a national organization. Write a teacher's guide for your book. Offer to lead a workshop at your local library. Create a course on Udemy. So many options for teaching and each of them creates built in exposure for you and your book.

Are you a workout junkie? Use your audio book to create chapter distance challenges to encourage runners to listen to your book as they run. Create individualized workout plans based on your characters' personality types. Submit an article on ways that authors can stay fit while spending so much time behind a desk.

These are just two examples, but I hope it helps you to get an idea of what I'm talking about here. There is no one right way to market your book. So why not do it in the way that feels the most fun to you. Not only will marketing this way feel like less of a chore, you'll also see better results since readers will be able to tell you aren't just phoning it in.

What are your passions? What makes you tick. Share your crossover marketing ideas in the comments. If you aren't sure how to apply your passion to your marketing, comment with your areas of interest and we can all brainstorm to help you generate some ideas. Because 100 minds is usually better than one.