Little Shepherd VBT - Day 16

Does it seem a bit silly to include your own blog during your virtual book tour? Probably, but I hate empty spots in a tour. They glare at me every time I glance at my schedule, taunting me to do something about it.

I've now been on tour for 16 days. Book promotion is a tough gig--even when you know what you're doing. This year, I decided to tour for two months instead of three. I'm glad I did, because we had that awful snowstorm at the end of October and I was without power for a week. By tomorrow, I think I'll finally be all caught up.

So, what's different about touring this year versus last?

• I'm not checking my Amazon stats. Last year I tracked my stats daily until Christmas. It was fun-especially when Little Shepherd reached their bestsellers list in its category multiple times. It's not that I don't care now, it's just not something I feel is good to focus too much on. I would rather focus on writing.
• I reached out to more reviewers that I didn't know. Luckily, the majority of the feedback on the book remains positive. It's tough to ask a totally objective person to review your work, but it's a necessary part of book promotion.
• I'm not running huge giveaways. Last year I put together gift baskets to raffle off at the end of my tour. I think smaller prizes at the end of each month instead of two large prizes at the end of the entire tour schedule would have made more sense. I didn't find the giveaways increased the number of comments on my blog stops or greatly influenced readers to purchase the book.

I love book promotion, and I love helping spread the word about great books. I think the sheer number of blogs I run and contribute to can attest to that. I hope you enjoy following me along the tour trail. If you've purchased Little Shepherd, I would love to hear your thoughts. You can always reach me at ccmal(at)charter(dot)net.

Wishing you and your family a blessed Thanksgiving.

Cheryl