People hate internet spam. Nothing will turn someone off of your work quicker than you spamming an entire list with self-promotion--and nothing else. However, that doesn't mean that you can't take advantage of the internet's networking capabilities.

Tip #1 - Find appropriate places to promote.

There are message boards, listserves, forums, chat rooms, and groups/communities on Yahoo, Google, Livejournal, MySpace and Tribe.net, all catering to pagans and occultists. We all write pagan and occult-related books here. That means finding pagan and occult themed places online. There are tons to choose from, thankfully, so you can pick and choose. It's better to go for ones that are high traffic, but also have a decent mix of people. If you're touting a book on ceremonial or chaos magic, for example, it will probably go over better on an occult or mixed-theme group than a group of newcomer teenage Wiccans who've barely gotten through Scott Cunningham's basics.

I probably don't need to say this, but make sure you're not posting off topic. If your book is about Chaos magic, people on the Jessica Simpson fan club forum probably won't be too interested. Some places can be a little iffy--they may like talking about esoterica, but not appreciate advertising. If you're not sure, email the moderator and ask for permission--most of them are pretty good about it.

Tip #2 - People are less wary of a participant.

It can be very tempting to join every group, forum and message board you find even remotely related to your book, and then post about your writing. Don't do it. People will point to your post as spam quicker than you can blink if you make an advertisement your first post, or if all your posts are ad-related. This is even more likely if people notice you doing it on numerous locations.

The best thing to do is to get involved. Choose a few places the appeal to you, and start by making an introduction post. You can mention your books, but don't make it the primary focus of your intro. Then feel free to respond to various other threads and conversations. It's fun, and it lets you build up some authority on the list since (hopefully) you sound like you know what you're talking about. That way, when you announce that your new book is out, people will be more liable to say "Hey, that's cool!" rather than "Geez, will somebody shut this person up?"

Be sure not to overextend yourself. You don't have to check every forum every day. Try rotating them throughout the week, checking one or two a day. Make sure to stay active.

Tip #3 - Even if they know you, don't overdo the promo posting.

It doesn't matter who you are--unless the forum/etc. is specifically for advertisements (and there are a few of them) posting once a week about your books probably isn't going to go over well. I try to limit my promo posting to only when a new book is available for preorders, and when it's out. On the other hand, there are ways to weave promotion into conversations. If someone's talking about animal magic, I'll post my own answer to the question, and then say "Just FYI, I have a book on this topic you may be interested in" and then place a link to my website there. I only do this rarely, though, just so that not every post I make involves self-promotion. Forums and such exist for people to have conversations, not for people to constantly pimp what they're selling. When in doubt, ask the moderators before posting something.

Tip #4 - No sockpuppets.

A sockpuppet is a fake user account/profile created by one person who already has hir own public account. For example, someone could create a sock puppet account to spam a list or forum with information on the author's new book--without admitting that the author hirself is doing it. However, sock puppets rarely fool anyone--ISP tracing, checking up on the account history, and other traces quickly show whether the sock puppet suspicion is true. And sock puppetry will NOT gain you any friends outside of a daycare center.

Tip #5 - Your own territory is your own.

Livejournal, MySpace, Tribe.net and other personal blogs are excellent resources for self-promotion. There, it's okay to talk all about yourself, and build up an elaborate profile about yourself. For instance, I've very active on Livejournal, and I post on my progress on whatever book I'm working on, as well as drop hints and teasers every now and then. Some people will friend you on these just because you're an author you like. However....

Tip #6 - Don't bore your friends.

I also use Livejournal to keep in touch with real-world friends, and so I don't want to bore them with book blab. In addition, just as I like finding out more about people who are friended to my account through their journals, others like to find out more about me, whether it's because they think I'm nifty, or they like my writing, or whatever. People like to read about boring, everyday stuff, believe it or not. So primarily I use my LJ as a way to talk to people, but on the side it's a great promotional tool.

Tip #7 - Get your own website and listserve.

I'm sure many of you already have a website, either for books, or other things. This is free range for you to promote, and nobody's gonna complain. Keep people up to date, and update often. If people have something new to look at, they'll come back to visit more often.

Get your own listserve, too. The groups at Yahoo work great, and you can even get a little bit of HTML which you can post on your website so that people can automatically join your group just by entering their email. I made mine announcement-only, rather than a discussion group. It's a great way to keep people posted about your progress.

A little off topic, regarding mailing groups of people. Don't add people to your listserve without permission, and don't spam other people who didn't ask for information. Again, I probably don't nee dto tell y'all this, but I'm saying it anyway just to say it.

Tip #8 - Anywhere you can put a biography, add book information.

I publish a lot of articles online, on Witchvox, Key23 and other places. I always include a bio, including current book information and contact information. That way people who like my article can explore more. In addition, it gets name recognition out there. Names are memes--they like to replicate and spread. Give them a boost!

In addition, adding book info to your email signature helps, too. This is especially true on listserves--a quick blurb at the end of every email isn't going to annoy anyone. Mine just includes my name, titles of my books, and my website.

And there you have it--eight tips on how to be a promoter instead of a spammer!

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