I wish I had created this long ago …

I wish I had created this long ago …

… my own day for annual calendar

It’s time to step up to your influence building plate. Why not do it by having a special day, or week, or even a month each year that’s all about you and/or your book … or your expertise? Create one for 2024. You can attempt to register it with Chase’s Calendar of Events. The odds won’t be great in your favor … at least early on.

Why not claim it? Push forward and use it. Start putting your day/week/month out and support it throughout the timeline. Posters. Events. Contests. Blogs. What else? Have some fun. Then, after building some traction, approach the folks at Chase’s Calendar.

Step 1. Review the list below and identify and circle those that speak to you. Circle them. For example, do you have a favorite classic author from years gone by? Throw one of them a virtual birthday party! One of my personal faves is Pat Conroy and his book The Prince of Tides—he was born on October 26. Of course, I would make a poster celebrating the read that I was so engrossed in that I couldn’t put the book down on vacation … and ran into a sidewalk sign in Maui reading it as I walked!

Do you have more than one book? March could be your month—it’s National Reading Month. In July, National Anti-Boredom Month bubbles up. Fiction authors should be grabbing this one along with children and juvenile authors.

Take advantage of them—create a special campaign for forward usage. Ideal social media poster fill-ins.

Step 2. Create your own calendar. Add your favorite occasions and dates to your calendar, plus a reminder a few days in advance to goose you that “the day” is coming.

Step 3. Noodle ways to celebrate and cross promote your book/expertise with it.

You can:

Create a social media campaign. Think posters, posts, podcasting,
Write a Blog. Why this is a special day is important to you or write about it in your email newsletter.
Feature it in your Newsletter. Include it as a special feature or lead with it. Add your snazzy poster so there is a pop.
Imagination time … create any event-related image to post out social media. Here are two that I created for World Book Day, which is in March each year.

And this one will be posted on October 26 celebrating the birthday of one of my favorite authors:

Think of special holidays that are universal and you don’t need to explain:

Create a short video to share on social media. Start with your YouTube channel and then post over to Instagram or Facebook Stories or share it on your book’s Facebook page. Adventurous? Could TikTok be in your midst?
Celebrate and Party time! Why not—if Sadie Hawkins could have her day to ask a guy out … why not you?

Team up with a group of authors with my 3-3-3 concept. Do it solo or with a group of other authors. Get a company/group/facility/store supporter—it gets one-third of book sales. Donate one-third of the proceeds from book sales during a specific period to a nonprofit or because that is one of your “purposes.” The final 0ne-third goes to you.

Step 4: Don’t let all these amazing ways to honor books—YOUR BOOKS—and reading go to waste. Mix Quote type posters and ones with Images. Have some fun … and make these a habit to post.

Step 5: Flip it … take your primary word or them and do the same. Have some fun? Mix Quote type posters and ones with Images. Have some fun … and make these a habit to post.

HOT Tip … why not create your own month … week … day? And use it for marketing forward with social media campaigns and special quotes posters. Hint … look at the months below. Many are loaded with days; some are light. My suggestion is to look at the light months: June, July, August, and December. Media attention will be more open for you to pitch to. Mine is August 16 … I’m thinking of expanding it for the entire month. Okay, no longer thinking. I will do it, starting August 1, 2024.

Next week, you will get the entire calendar for 2024. Use it and have some fun.

Dr. Judith Briles is a book publishing expert and coach. Often, she must roll up her writing sleeves and become a Book Doctor, juicing up storylines and author words. She empowers authors and works directly with authors who want to be seriously successful and has been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the ’80s. Judith is the author of 44 books including Author YOU: Creating and Building Your Author and Book Platforms, Snappy Sassy Salty: Success for Authors and Writers, and How to Create a Million Dollar Speech. Her personal memoir When God Says NO-Revealing the YES When Adversity and Loss Are Present is a #1 bestseller on Amazon and her historical fiction debut Secret Journey. Collectively, her books have earned over 45 book awards. Judith speaks throughout the year at publishing conferences.

Throughout the year, she holds Judith Briles Book Unplugged in-person and online experiences: Publishing, Speaking, Marketing, and Social Media. All are two-day intensives limited to a small group of authors who want to be seriously successful. Join Judith live for the “AuthorU-Your Guide to Book Publishing” podcast on the Toginet Radio Network HERE.

Follow @AuthorUYOUBooks and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorYOU, and join the Facebook group Book Publishing with The Book Shepherd. If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her.