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Saturday, June 6, 2015

MAKING YOUR BOOK GO VIRAL



There's a fate worse than not having your book noticed.


It's having your book go viral.  Yes.  Sounds strange but there it is.

Harper Lee and Bill Watterson both found that out.  What do you do for an encore?

With every book we write we go back to zero for the next one. 
No single creative success can be sustained. 

That’s why you can’t create solely for profit or praise. In the end, the thrill never lasts.

If you want to be an artist, there has to be something more than fame that sustains you.

I can hear you: 

LET ME WORRY ABOUT THE ENCORE.  

TELL ME HOW TO DO IT THE FIRST TIME!

All right:


1.) FILL THE CURIOSITY GAP

During World War II researchers in Britain and the U.S. studied how rumors could be weaponized. 

They discovered that when something happened (like a big noise) and there was no "official" explanation for it, rumors proliferated in this information void. 

There are still areas where there isn't much real information or data available. 

Find out what people want to know more about and give it to them. 


2.) DON'T BE THE WHITE RABBIT

Be timely.   

 Is there some new trend you hear being talked about around you? Be the first to write about what's happening, then emphasis the urgent and timely nature of your content. 


3.) PROVOKE CONVERSATION

 When asked about WORD OF MOUTH , people often cite conversation as a primary motivator. 

Contradicting commonly held wisdom will typically lead to people starting discussions about your book,

 as will including open-ended questions within your storyline and implying real-world applications of concepts you've covered. 


 4.) Viral books are often “high concept.” 

 (rather than character-driven, even though they introduce great characters),

with exceptional execution across all the story basics.


5.)  They also deliver something else, almost without exception:  

they seize the inherent compelling power of underlying story physics in ways that exceeds the competition.

These two realms of story –

compelling concept, 

with exceptionally strong underlying essences, is what gets you into the viral game.


YAWN! 

Right?  Isn't that what everyone does?



Not really. 


They don’t address these as goals 


Some authors just write their story, write it well, let it evolve organically, and hope somebody out there gets it.  


This may get them published, but it doesn’t usually get them on Oprah Winfrey.

 The viral book is driven by hero empathy
while delivering a vicarious ride.

  It isn’t the plot, and it isn’t character.  

No, this is about the reader.


 It’s about the reader transporting themselves into this world… going on this ride… feeling it… wanting to be the hero… 

wishing it was them… 

The reader completely engaging in this journey 
on a personal level.

I hope this helps in some small way.



6 comments:

  1. I don't think high concept is anything I will ever write.

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    1. Sorry for the delayed reply, Alex, but I worked 14 hours straight Sunday! Whew! Best to aim high is my thought: we might miss -- but what if we hit just right? :-)

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  2. Thanks for the advice. But by emphasizing it's about the reader, you've just explained for me why Fifty Shades of Grey was a massive seller. Clearly there are some pretty twisted readers out there!

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    1. The world is changing all around us -- and some of it is not for the better! Folks are calling dark light, but it is only that their mind's eye has become accustomed to the darkness. :-(

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  3. I've been in a slump, but as of last night am writing again. I've always worried that if a first book was received well, I'd be expected to produce another. What? That's too much pressure. I'm not a writing machine like you, dear Roland. :) I think you write while you sleep.

    I think we need to remember that a portion of what we write needs to be about the reader.

    I agree with Helena. There must be "some pretty twisted readers out there" if Fifty Shades was their cup of tea.

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    1. I've been concerned about you, Teresa! You've been away from your blog for so long.

      Not having a social life helps in me writing as much as I do! The lackluster reception my books have been getting at least lets me know that I will not have Harper Lee's problem of producing ANOTHER classic! :-)

      You're right: it is what speaks to our reader's spirit and pains that will draw her or him to our prose.

      And 50 Shades was filled with terrible prose, too! I had the ghost of Mark Twain point out some examples of it in his critique of the book in one of our shared posts! :-)

      By the way, I didn't read the book except for the segments pulled from various reviews of the book.

      Good to see you back!! :-)

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