1. Know your audience. Ask yourself what your audience needs to be successful. It’s not about what you need. You must put yourself in their shoes. If you have to, ask them. What are their fears? What are their desires?

Be willing to expose your flaws. People will more easily relate and like you. When your audience can see part of themselves in you, they’ll remember your message.

2. Don’t hold back. If you’re going to write a book, write it as if it’s your last. Don’t hold back. Give it all you’ve got.

If you know something or you have something and you’ve got it going for you, than you’ve already got it made. Confidence is key to embracing yourself so don’t hold back.

Read: Dear Writers, Here’s How to Transform Your Life in 6 Minutes a Day

3. Know your competition. What has already been written about your topic? You must stand out. If you’re going to write a book, make sure you feel strongly about what you’re saying. This is not the time to straddle the road.

4. Develop a marketing strategy long before your book launches. As a strategy, start by pre-selling your book on Amazon and in Barnes & Noble a few months before it becomes available.

If your book is selling well & outperforming all the other books that are similarly written on the same subject as yours, Amazon will send out ads about it. Try enticing readers to pre-order the book as well.

5. Send advance copies to bloggers who have a large audience. It’s a great and easy way to quickly grow your exposure. If other authors ask you to promote their book on your network, do it. You’ll need all of the help you can get when it’s time to get the word out about your book. Facebook is another great tool.

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