Getting published! (writing; non-fiction)

[ethanay]

Looks like I'm getting published. It's an excerpt from a larger work that I'm working on. The topic of the essay is "The role of ecosystem function in preventing catastrophic fire" from a human ecology perspective. It's part of a larger project I've been working on for a few years about the effective prevention of catastrophic fire. The larger piece explores the social, cultural, psychological and economic dimensions of effectively preventing catastrophic fire.


And the publisher based on that excerpt wants to explore book ideas with me. Cool and intimidating!

[srick]

Congratulations! That’s quite a feather in your cap and a very worthy subject! Bask in the sunshine.

[Dogma]

That's great - my congratulations!
I studied Landscape Ecology as part of my graduate degree - a truly fascinating and illuminating field. Keep it up - for all of our sake(s!)

[jaymarsch]

Congratulations, ethanay! Getting published is an accomplishment worth crowing about. The fact that it is on such a critical and timely topic makes it special as well.
Best,
Jayne

[RP]

Congrats from one published author to a soon-to-be another. You've completed the easy part; now you have sharpen your skills in what I call, the shameless art of self-promotion...

[ethanay]

Thank you folks!



I'm TERRIBLE at self-promotion. It's one of my biggest weaknesses. I often go out of my way to avoid self-promotion. I will excitedly talk about subjects that I feel strongly or enthusiastic about (such as the role of ecosystem function in the prevention of catastrophic fires...or evolutionary human ecology and appropriate technology more generally) but others' feeling of my excitement and enthusiasm for the subject matter is about as close as I can get to promotion.


Which is to say, if you have any tips re: self-promotion, they would be appreciated.


Dogma -- I'm curious whether you studied animal behavioral ecology or trophic cascade ecology as part of landscape ecology?

[buddyhu]

You should be proud! Getting published is a big deal.

Regarding self-promotion: i was not very good at it when i was working, but something an acquaintance shared with me helped me to adopt a better attitude towards self-promotion, which made me much more willing to pursue self-promotion. He said, “If you believe what you know and what you are doing has value, you have a responsibility to make it easier for people to know about you and your work.” Hearing this made it easier to pursue public speaking opportunities and to engage in behaviors that I had previously considered to be “self-flattering”. I never felt comfortable doing self-promotion, but I was able to do it enough to be reasonably successful in my career.

[Jamolay]

That is amazing! Congratulations! I am sure it is well deserved. Interesting topic and more and more important these days. We are heading into a rough future, a brush fire as an analogy.

[RP]

Unless you're John Grisham, Stephen King, JK Rowling or the like, you absolutely can not depend on your publisher to continue to promote your book. Whether you're comfortable with self-promotion or not, your sales and continued publication of your book will rise or fall based on your willingness to promote it. However, re-reading the OP, I'm wondering if you are you getting an article or book published?

[DoryDavis]

Would like to hear more about self promotion. Like many people I have self published on Amazon. And I believe in my books. But just can't figure out next steps. The latest is called EXECUTIVE BREAKFAST:

----------

What do a nervous-stomached corporate video director, a childlike business savant CEO, a brainless ad agency, a lovely video editor given to wanton double entendre, Joan of Arc, Stanley Kubrick and Montana Big Sky mysticism all have in common? EXECUTIVE BREAKFAST!

Comic, absurd, suspenseful, and in the end poignant, EXECUTIVE BREAKFAST is a Spinal Tap meets How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying take on the skullduggery of Fortune 500 board room politics and NYC ad agency shenanigans, with an informed look into the often tense, always chaotic behind-the-scenes workings of a corporate television studio.
https://smile.amazon.com/EXECUTIVE-B...ps%2C61&sr=8-1

[RP]

Originally Posted by DoryDavis

Would like to hear more about self promotion.

I can only speak to the outdoor guides that I wrote, but I suppose the principle remains the same. Determine who your audience/market is and invite yourself to present at their meetings, gatherings, newsletters, online blogs etc. I self-promoted the heck out of my second book, Mountain Bike! Virginia by writing to every Barnes & Noble in Virginia to see if they'd be interested in my doing a book signing - most were. I did the same with cycling clubs throughout Virginia. I also wrote to all major newspapers/outdoor writers in Virginia. I also invited myself to some local TV station appearances. Keep in mind that this was in the late 90s and mountain biking was not the huge thing it is now when there are many, more outlets for self-promotion including one's own blog/website. In the land of the blind, the one-eyed person is supreme. If you've written a substantial article or book, that makes you the self-appointed expert. Flaunt it to anyone who could conceivably be interested in helping you self-promote...

[DoryDavis]

Originally Posted by RP

I can only speak to the outdoor guides that I wrote, but I suppose the principle remains the same. Determine who your audience/market is and invite yourself to present at their meetings, gatherings, newsletters, online blogs etc. I self-promoted the heck out of my second book, Mountain Bike! Virginia by writing to every Barnes & Noble in Virginia to see if they'd be interested in my doing a book signing - most were. I did the same with cycling clubs throughout Virginia. I also wrote to all major newspapers/outdoor writers in Virginia. I also invited myself to some local TV station appearances. Keep in mind that this was in the late 90s and mountain biking was not the huge thing it is now when there are many, more outlets for self-promotion including one's own blog/website. In the land of the blind, the one-eyed person is supreme. If you've written a substantial article or book, that makes you the self-appointed expert. Flaunt it to anyone who could conceivably be interested in helping you self-promote...

Great advice! Thank you!

[RP]

Originally Posted by DoryDavis

Great advice! Thank you!

I'd add that you should plan to give away copies to the people who you hope will help promote your book. You should see if you can present to college/community/libray writing classes. Your experience with self-publishing will probably be welcome...

[Pura Vida]

Congrats on getting published. That's a great accomplishment!

[ethanay]

Originally Posted by buddyhu

You should be proud! Getting published is a big deal.

Regarding self-promotion: i was not very good at it when i was working, but something an acquaintance shared with me helped me to adopt a better attitude towards self-promotion, which made me much more willing to pursue self-promotion. He said, “If you believe what you know and what you are doing has value, you have a responsibility to make it easier for people to know about you and your work.” Hearing this made it easier to pursue public speaking opportunities and to engage in behaviors that I had previously considered to be “self-flattering”. I never felt comfortable doing self-promotion, but I was able to do it enough to be reasonably successful in my career.

Thank you. I agree a lot with the sentiment you express in sharing my enthusiasm and belief in my work. What scares me is I've seen so many people who promote reduce themselves and their entire lives to their "brand," on one hand, and then also become more rigid and closed-minded, on the other. My main goal is to demonstrate different ways of thinking about, framing and defining problems we commonly take for granted.


Another important factor is, even from my moment of birth, my family described me as their "little old man." I've always been a bit world-weary and crotchety. In a way, sharing my writing, and eventually some of my finished musical compositions, is about no longer hiding myself. In all honesty, I just want to keep hiding. But I also have to admit I continue to hide, in part, out of habitual familiarity. Partly due to lifelong chronic illness. Neither of those are excuses, but it's just acknowledging what I have to work with.