Author Interview - N.N. Light Author Promotions - Paranormal Romance Guild Tamela

Interview with N.N. Light Author Promotions

by Sherry Perkins

Our interview with N. N. Light is a bit of a departure for the Paranormal Romance Guild. Typically, we interview authors, not service providers. But N. N. Light presents us with the opportunity to explore author services such as editing and cover design (N. N. Light’s Book Heaven) or promotions and marketing for authors (N. N. Light Author Promotions)–both traditionally published, hybrid or indie, seasoned author or new to the business–the N. N. Light team offers individualized options, no matter what your previous exposure to author services and marketing has been.

N. N. Light Author Promotions has a tag line, “Take your book marketing to the next level.” If you have questions about how to do exactly that, read more, from N. N. Light:

N. N. Light Author Promotions provides several beneficial services to authors. Your tag line is “Take your book marketing to the next level.” Could you talk about the services you offer or what it means to “take your book marketing to the next level”?

Over the years, we’ve seen several authors (traditional, hybrid and indie) make mistakes when it comes to marketing their books. Most of them use the ‘throw it against the wall and see if it sticks’ approach and while it may seem like a good option, it really isn’t. Readers, like any of us, are bombarded by advertising day and night. ‘BUY MY BOOK!’ ‘YOU HAVE TO BUY MY BOOK!’

We take a different approach. We take what we like to call the Tupperware marketing approach. What is that? Back in the 1950’s, women would get together for coffee and tea. They’d talk about their husbands, children and local gossip. They’d also swap recipes and have Tupperware parties. One hostess would invite all her friends and female family members over and sell Tupperware. She’d talk about her personal experience and show proof how it’s so handy for the housewife. Tupperware soon became a household name.

We do the same thing with an author’s book. We take their book and create organic word-of-mouth promos that get noticed. We make each post visually appealing and use keywords plus graphics to grab a reader’s attention. We also use our writing skills to generate huge amounts of buzz so that readers think they have to find out what happens and buy the book.

Taking your book marketing to the next level is simply investing in your books through well-thought out promotions. It’s a consistent plan where you use your marketing budget wisely. Research shows that a consumer needs to see a commercial/ad eight times before a light bulb goes off that they need the product. Book marketing needs to be consistent in order for it to resonate with readers.

As for what services we offer, we have promotions ranging from cover reveals to book reviews to guest posts to editing and graphic design. We’re a one-stop small business for authors, no matter their budget. We have the social media reach of over thirty million and continue to grow. To see a full listing of our services, click here: https://www.nnlightsbookheaven.com/author-promotions-services

What motivated you and Mr. N to create N. N. Light’s Book Heaven and N. N. Light Author Promotions? Was it experiential, personal or something else?

We started N. N. Light Author Promotions five years ago and it was simply a matter of seeing a void in the marketplace. As authors ourselves, we struggled to find inexpensive promotions to market our books. Those who did offer a promo in our price range treated us as a number. There wasn’t the personal touch. We knew we could do a better job, so we launched N. N. Light Author Promotions in 2015 and N. N. Light’s Book Heaven in 2018. We started out small and grew to be a fairly large family-run author promotions company. We treat each of our clients with respect and make sure to maintain a personal relationship. We customize our services to show each client is a VIP, no matter the price point.

Book promotions are great for sales and name recognition but can be tedious for authors to set up and maintain. Do you have favorite promotional activities used to achieve sales?

We understand how frustrating it can be for authors to keep track of book promos and build a brand. That’s where we come in. We want to be the ones who take over the marketing so authors can concentrate on writing wonderful stories.

Our favorite promotion has to be our main author event each month. For a small fee, an author can join forces with other authors in a combined effort to sell books. This month (December), we launched our Christmas and Holiday Book Festival. Each day, we feature a couple of books through spotlights plus there’s a huge giveaway for readers to enter. Each book spotlight also has two questions for authors to fill out. This month, the authors are sharing a fun holiday family tradition and explain why their book will put readers in the holiday mood. These questions add a personal touch to the spotlight and readers really respond to it.

Another reason why we love this kind of promotion so much is because we give authors the opportunity to purchase social media add-ons. These can be for their author newsletter or any of the main social media platforms. These add-ons go on the Rafflecopter giveaway widget. Why are they beneficial for authors? Well, if you’re trying to grow your newsletter list, this is a great way to do it. Readers subscribe to an author’s newsletter in order to gain bonus entries into the giveaway. Authors can expect anywhere from 200-500 sign-ups, depending on how many entries we have.

Editing a book is typically done in rounds–each round focusing on a specific editing function. It can get expensive. If I could only afford one round of editing, which would you recommend and why?

We get asked this question a lot so we can answer this one without thinking. If an author can only afford one round of editing, get the copy edit. It’s an all-purpose edit, at least for us. We take an overview of everything to make the book shine. Plus, we are far less than our competitors. We’re not in it for the money but we want to help those authors who need editing.

Is there a difference between graphic design and design in general when considering covers, banners, memes, etc? Do you use image-editing software? Do I need to worry about image copyrights?

Mrs. N here, I thought I’d answer this one since I’m the designer here. I have an art history background and have been an artist in various mediums since I was eight years old. I take the same approach when designing book covers, social media graphics and banners. You want your typeface to pop and not get lost in the background. You want your colors to be appealing and stand out. It’s hard for me to breakdown the process because it’s innate in me. I use both Canva and Bookbrush for all graphic design. When creating graphics and book covers, I make sure I use royalty-free images so there isn’t a copyright issue.

What can small businesses such as N. N. Light Author Promotions offer to independent authors?

We pride ourselves on offering quality, affordable promotions and services to indie authors. The prices are lower than our competitors, but we bring a personalization to the services that you can’t get with the bigger promo companies. We don’t promise book sales but we instead promise huge amounts of buzz. No one can promise sales without being deceptive in some way because readers make up their own mind. When authors sign up for one of our services, they know they’re getting exactly what we promise them. We’re professional marketers and if there is ever a technical issue, we don’t hide it but are completely honest.

Exactly what is an Amazon Vine Voice Reviewer, and how did you become one?

We’ve been reviewing on Amazon for close to fifteen years. We’ve been a top-rated reviewer on Amazon for five years. Last year, we were personally invited by Amazon to join their Vine Voice program. We were so honored, we signed up right away. Vine Voice is a program where Amazon teams up with their top reviewers and companies who offer products. The companies offer free testing of products in exchange for a review. Since we usually only review books, that is our focus.

We’re also a verified (blue check) influencer on Amazon. We’re not sure what that means but we’re thrilled to pieces to have that little blue check.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten? What’s the best advice you’d give to an author?

The best piece of advice Mr. N has ever gotten is from one of his professors. “It’s a matter of application. Apply the seat of your pants to the seat of your chair.”

The best advice we give to our clients/authors is this: “Never give up.” Some days you’ll get a blistering review and others you’ll get a glowing review. Some queries will be accepted and some won’t. Keep going.