For some writers, knowing their genre is a given. They love romance or historical fiction, and that’s where they think they belong. For others, it’s more about experimentation. Write some essays, try a nonfiction book, write more essays, try one’s hand at fiction. When is it time to “brand” yourself?
Writing Tip for Today: If you visit author’s web pages (and you should) you’ll notice logos that try to capture the essence of that writer’s work. One of my favorites is Romantic Comedy writer Janice Hanna Thompson’s, “Love, Laughter and Happily Ever After!” But some of these logos are either a mouthful or kind of silly. Besides, maybe you’re still not sure where you fit in the market. Should you think up a logo or hire a marketing company to do one?

• The first thing you should do is try to answer the question, “Who is my audience?” No fair saying everybody. Knowing the sort of reader you wish to target will help your writing more than a lot of other things. And knowing where your writer’s heart lies will help you write with passion.
• Do begin to blog, social network and other basic elements of the writer’s platform. My opinion is that you’ll settle into a “brand” faster if you work on getting your name out there and improve your skills. Fancy websites, publicists and marketing dollars are better spent after you’ve sold a manuscript.
• If you are able to sell a series of fiction or have multiple contracts in a single area of nonfiction, it makes more sense to put yourself out there as the guy/gal who writes fill-in-the-blank and create a logo.

Try This!

Try your hand at creating an author logo. Think about what you’d write if you could. Try to use that word in the phrase. Surf author sites and get an idea of logos out there. Don’t allow your logo to run over 5 words if possible.