You know how a picture's worth a thousand words? It occurred to me that maybe a link or two, directing you to a blog hop or a book blog tour or a book review, might be a good way to show you how everything works. So let's follow Cathy-on-a-Stick up those ooky cave stairs to...
THE COFFIN HOP HORROR WEB TOUR!!!
Here we have a themed blog hop, where a bunch of horror writers (97, to be exact) are waiting for you to drop in this week and get the bejeebers scared out of you. (There are some scary writers out there, my friends, writers who make you pray that you will NOT run into them on a dark and creepy night. Alone. In the woods. With their laptops in tow.)
Anyway, notice how each writer gets a chance to promote his/her books or stories or poetry, and you get a chance to perhaps find a new favorite writer--and win a prize or two while you're at it. Bet you'll also notice that some writers have done a great marketing job, from getting followers, to promoting their work, to offering fun contests. (You'll want to be one of those writers if you participate in a blog hop.)
Okay, now we'll hop into our time machine so we can visit the WOW!BLOG TOUR with Linda Hubelek's book, Trail of Thread, here at the Hall of Fame back in May of this year.
You'll notice that I talked a little about Linda and gave a short synopsis of her book. Often, authors will prepare ten to twelve posts on different topics and blog hosts can choose a topic. So I asked Linda to share a little about writing for our descendants. And I ended the blog book tour with a giveaway of her e-book, which Linda provided. Now here's a little something from behind the scene. Though I didn't get a ton of visitors commenting that day for a chance to win Linda's book, I did get a ton of visitors to the blog. And I still get hits on that post. So as a host, I attracted readers who might not have come to the Hall of Fame (and some of them signed on as followers and return). For the author, the promotion stays out there forever, possibly drawing new readers every day.
Finally, let's sneak a peek at some of my favorite spots to catch a BOOK REVIEW!
Sometimes, I'll review a book just because I like the book. My friend (and a swell writer herself), Sally Apokedak, often reviews Young Adult and Middle Grade novels just because she wants to. If I want an in-depth and thoughtful discussion of a book, I'll read Sally's reviews. But don't expect her to give away her books. (She might let you borrow one or two, if you know her.)
Any time you drop into Jodi Webb's blog, you're likely to find a book review. She reviews just about everything, from adult to kidlit. I like how Jodi gives a short synopsis, then follows it with her review, and then gives her readers a chance to win the book. Jodi is usually provided books by publishers; if you review a few books at your blog, don't be surprised if you're contacted by publishers, asking you to review their books. I rarely review books when contacted by a publisher, but I will do so if a. I LOVE the author and have already read other books by him/her or b. I REALLY, really love the author (in a writing kind of way).
So, I hope those links painted a better picture than all my blah-blah-blahing about blog hops and blog book tours and book reviews. Honestly, I'm wore out. (And Cathy-on-a-Stick's getting a tad peckish, too.)
