by Lou Belcher

Created on: August 06, 2009

In any business venture branding is very important. If you are an author, branding is especially important. You want people to remember you for your writing. Through branding you give them something to remember you by. Her are some of the ways you can go about branding yourself as an author:

1. Choose graphics to represent you on your website, on social media sights you belong to, and on your paper promotional items, such as business cards, brochures and bookmarks. If you are not particularly artistic hire a graphic designer to help you.

2. Choose colors appropriate to the genre and the mood you create with your writing.

3. Choose images and fonts that create the mood of your topic or genre. For example, pastels would be great for romance or women's fiction, whereas bolder colors would better represent thrillers. Fonts with soft curling edges would be best for the title on the book cover of a general interest book, whereas fonts with sharp edges might be better on the cover of sci-fi books.

4. Whatever colors, fonts, and graphics you use make sure you like them before you commit yourself. Once you decide to use them, you will want to stick with them because you will build your brand recognition on them and you don't want to switch once people begin to identify you with them.

5. Join writers' groups and associations. Take advantage of ways they have of increasing your exposure as an author. Offer to present a workshop to the group to increase your recognition. Be sure to hand out business cards, brochures, and bookmarks at these events, so people will see and get to know the artwork and fonts that you use as your brand.

6. Reference your book or articles in everything you do. This will increase recognition of you as an author. When people ask what you do, be sure to say that you write. Even if you only write part time and have a full-time job doing something else, always mention that you are a writer. This will increase your branding as an author.

7. Create a website. Don't use a family website for your writing. Instead create a blog or website devoted only to you as an author and to your writing. Write short articles and post regular writing on your website.

8. Begin a newsletter about your area of expertise. In the newsletter, mention your writing, for example mention that you are the author of particular books and that you write for certain magazines or journals. By doing so, readers will brand you as an author.

Branding yourself as an author will occur with repetition and consistency of mentioning what you have written and giving others something (a brochure, business card or bookmark) to remind them that you are an author.

Learn more about this author, Lou Belcher.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.