Coffee, Tea and you want me to host what?

Virtual book tours (or blog book tours) are the wave of the future. With the economy as it is and finances dropping (as well as some institutions on the verge of collapse), doing a live book tour is getting near impossible. The travel alone is the biggest expense an author has to incur to do a book tour. You have to spend your time schmoozing with the managers of the bookstores or wherever you happen to want to set up a book signing with no guarantee that you will make enough sales (that's of course sales for the store and receiving royalties months later which amount to pennies on the dollar; most authors make less than $1 per book, even priced at $25 for a hardback copy), then either book a flight or drive to your destination, book a hotel for the number of nights you plan to be in the area and then of course eat out or on the run. Then you pack up and head out either to the next destination or home. Expenses are racking up with no definite income based on the sales or lack of sales you may have.

So what's an author to do? Well, a simple solution is to do a virtual book tour. This is done online and if you don't have a regular day job that you have to get dressed for, you could actually visit all your tour stops in your pajamas. But I wouldn't recommend it since someone told me before that if you want to feel the part, you need to dress the part. At least put on comfortable clothing just in case you need to run out during the day for that cup of coffee or you need a break.

I have hosted several tours of late and have been a poor host. That is until the recent tour on my JGDS blog with Trockle. No, I wasn't the best host for the tour but I was more active and participated in the tour more than I have other tours. Why? The difference could have been that I am writing children's books now and felt that promoting a child's book would help get my blog noticed and hopefully boost sales for me as well as the author of Trockle, or maybe it was because Vivian (my publisher) was the one putting it together and since it was a fellow author in the same publishing house I felt obligated to do a better job than previously.

Most of the other tours I have hosted have been from a professional service and it was kind of "here is the tour we are doing now and would you mine posting something on such and such day" and then it was over and done with - not much contact with the author (if any at all) nor the people putting on the tour. I felt distant, like I didn't really need to worry about anything. I would post my obligatory article, that I volunteered to do but there would be nothing in return. I didn't see much change in the hits or comments on my blog during a tour stop than before. I was a bad host. You have to stay active, authors in contact with hosts and keep things out there in the public's eye in order to have a successful tour.

I am about to host three more tours, one on the JGDS blog and two here and because of the guidelines Holly and Vivian have come up with, I believe I will be a better host and having been more active in the most recent tour doesn't hurt either.

If you are a fellow writer and want to have your book hosted, it is fine but remember to stay involved with the tour all the way to the end. Post responses on your host blogs as the comments build during the day on a particular spot. Promote yourself like crazy everywhere you have connections. Your blog should be very active during the time of your tour. Your hosts need to make sure they talk your book up during the tour as well, not just for the day they host you but all the stops you plan on making during your tour. Try to offer your hosts something. Maybe have contests and have door prizes, doesn't have to be anything that costs a lot, but offer something. Your hosts and followers will participate more if you have something to give away.

For more guidelines on what makes a good host, email me at eeldering@gmail.com and I'll share with you the list Holly and Viv have come up with and are willing to share with future hosts.

So, yes, I will host book tours and I will be a good hostess and promote your book to help you out.

Lea Shizas's virtual book tour

Lea is an author, editor and creator of the Muse Online Conference and Musing Our Children websites. She is doing a month long book tour during the month of February - promoting her book, Rock of Realm. She is going to give away an ebook copy of her book to one commentor/questioner on each of the sites she visits. Here is a schedule of her tour (I may be slipping in with an interview or something on February 18th) to follow her around and leave your comments and questions to be in the drawing for the free ebook - see you all in the postings. E :)

February 4th - Donna McDine's blog - stop by today and leave a question or comment for Lea.

February 7th Jan Verhoeff's blog

February 10th Make Your First Million Online promotional website

February 11th book review Donna McDine's blog

February 13th: Beverly M's gather spot

February 18th: Elysabeth's Emerald City -- book review

February 20th- Vivian Zabel's blogs: interview
Vivian Zabel's blog
Vivian Zabel's journal
Vivian Zabel's blog365 spot on ning.com
Vivian Zabel's myspace

February 23 Ashley Ladd's writing blog

Feb. 26 Beverly M's gather spot

February 28th- Joyce Anthony’s Books and Authors Blog: Joyce Anthony's getting to know an author blog

February 29th- Joyce Anthony’s chat room- details on time to be scheduled


So come by any of the above mentioned blogs or websites and see what lea has in store for you throughout the month.