Why Bother?

No matter what kind of book you want to write or have written, at some point in the process you likely had the thought above-why bother? Whether you have a book about Cajun cooking, how to do well on tests, a mystery novel, or a picture book featuring cuddly critters there are hundreds, if not thousands already out there.

Why bother? The short answer is because you're you and nobody else, no one else's voice or story is exactly the same. Two quotes that exemplify this came from two different sources that I respect greatly over the last few days:

1. There are more people out there, waiting to hear from you, who can hear only from you, than you can ever get to in your lifetime- Jeff Herring (Article Marketing & Social Networking expert)

2. People online need and want what you do, the way you do it-Dawud Miracle (Website Consultant, Small Biz Marketing Expert)

So does this mean just because you write your unique whatever it is "they" will come & buy? No, it will still take a lot of hard work, especially on the marketing side because you still have to help your audience find your book/product.

What it does mean though is that your message is needed by someone. Maybe it's one, ten or a thousand people, but someone needs it. Your goal, go find them and tell them.


Good Writing & God Bless,
Cheryl Pickett

New Keyword Tool

If you write non-fiction, or if you have a website for your book (you do don't you?), even if it's fiction, I hope you are familiar with the term "keywords". Just in case you aren't, keywords are those words and short phrases people type into search engines. The search engine then looks for them on websites as they try to match a request for information. Keywords are also the basis for the ads that show up on the side of the results page. Basically, in the world of the Internet, keywords are everywhere and if you want to attract visitors you need to have at least a basic grasp of how they work and where/when you need to use them.

Over the years, there have been a variety of tools that help people figure out the most popular keywords are on any given subject. That's important to know because if your website has those popular words in the right places, it will come up high in a search. If you write or post and article on a blog, directory, etc. the same applies.

Today, I found a new tool that works a little differently called Keyword Questions It appears to be a new variation from Wordtracker. It's different in that when you put in a topic or potential keyword, it generates a list of recent questions posed by searchers rather than just phrases.

How does this help you? Type in the topic of your current book or book you're planning to write. Here are just a few ways to use the search results:

1. How many of the popular questions are you addressing? If not many, are you sure people have a need or desire for what you're offering?

2. Pose and answer one or two of the questions within your back cover blurb and use that copy on summary pages on Amazon etc.

3. Make sure your website utilizes the questions or keywords within the questions in the appropriate places including in the text.

4. Even if you write fiction, you may be able to enter locations or other central themes of your book and see what people are talking about and also get blog posts or ideas for hot topics to weave into the story.

What are your keywords & why?

Good Writing & God Bless,
Cheryl Pickett