Writers’ conference Feb. 19 in Johnson City to help authors market their books
DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR
JOHNSON CITY — Eva Pohler found herself with four finished novels — but all were on her computer’s hard drive with little prospect of publication through traditional forms.
“I had some promising prospects with agents, but every time I came close to landing one, the deal would fall through and break my heart,” Pohler said. Undeterred, Pohler decided to give independent publishing a shot with two of her novels.
“Then, I sat back and waited for the world to discover me. I decided I would let the market, rather than a handful of agents, decide the fate of my books,” she added.
But the throngs of readers “discovering” her novels never showed up. Disappointed, Pohler started to believe her writing just wasn’t ready.
In June, things changed. Pohler attended a writers’ conference, where she learned the basics of marketing. Renewed by the information, Pohler applied what she learned, and, soon, her sales began to climb.
“I went from selling one book a day to 15 to 20 a day,” she said. “Soon after, I was selling between 30 to 50 a day and hitting the bestselling lists in several categories on Amazon.”
This change came in a matter of a few months, not years or decades. While Pohler could write, she had to learn about marketing to get her books in readers’ hands.
“Marketing didn’t help my career; it made my career,” Pohler said.
Pohler and two other independent authors, Valerie Gaumont and Pamela Hutchins are joining forces Feb. 19 to share with other writers how to develop a marketing plan. The event is the centerpiece of the Johnson City Library’s sixth annual writers’ conference, “Get Read: A Writers Marketing Conference.”
The program is 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park Settlement, located on Ladybird Lane and Nugent Avenue. The program costs $40 and includes a catered lunch. Organizers said they would like people to register by Feb. 17, if possible.
For registration information, go to www.jclibrarysite.org or call (830) 868-4469.
Johnson City Library director Maggie Goodman said the goal of the conference is to provide authors with the tools to better market their works. It spawned from a previous conference that touched on the subject, but interest in the topic got organizers to offer the Feb. 19 program.
“Marketing is as important as getting the book written,” Goodman said. “If nobody knows your book is out there, then how will they know to read it.”
The workshop will include three afternoon break-out sessions. Goodman said one session will focus on the first steps of marketing, which include just determining who your book’s market is. Another session will discuss the book launch.
“A lot of authors go on the road, literally, to promote their book,” Goodman said. “That’s one of the strategies the conference will cover. How to do that book launch.”
But the workshop doesn’t stop there. Writers will learn how to keep marketing efforts up after the initial launch and look at developing a long-term strategy.
Pohler said it’s not enough just to write a book if you want to be a successful author.
“‘Build it, and they will come’ is a philosophy that worked in a fantasy about a baseball field,” she said. “Authors are naive if they believe those words apply to their books. If writers don’t help their readers find them, then their books will languish in the Field of Unknown.”
daniel@thepicayune.com