Do you cringe at the mention of marketing? Many writers do.
Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary defines the verb market as “to expose for sale in a market.”
As a beginning writer (to whom I chiefly speak), my question to you is “What have you got to sell?”
At this stage in your writing career, the majority of your available writing time should be spent on writing and honing your craft. Your focus is to get good at what you write and begin to consistently publish your work.
Stop a moment and answer the following questions.
- How many hours per week do you spend actually writing magazine articles or your book?
- How many hours do you spend writing and sending queries?
- How many hours do you spend on what you consider marketing activities?
If you discover you spend more hours on those marketing activities, things are upside down.
So take a deep breath and let it out. Leave the marketing for another day when you are being published. For now, write and hone your craft so when you submit your work it will be accepted.
What did you discover about how you spend your time? Leave your comments below.
Next time, we’ll take a look at whether marketing and building a platform are synonymous activities.