The title of this article may make you exclaim, “Crikey! You want me to give my book away? Do you know how long it took me to write this book? Why in the world would I do that?” I know. I know. But that is the very reason we are suggesting you do just that – give your book away.

If you are a first-time author, chances are pretty good that you do not have name recognition nor do you have a viable audience that is waiting with bated breath to read your book. First timers usually have a challenging time getting their name out there to the reading public so we recommend you do a giveaway. Here are a few suggestions you might want to follow and things to consider.

Is your book the first in a series? If so, then before you have your first book published you need to have the next in the series ready, or almost ready, to go. Why? It is a matter of striking while the iron is hot. When you present your first book as a giveaway book, having the second one ready to follow on the heals of it within a very short time will reinforce the anticipation and joy of readers who ‘just can’t wait to read the next one’. This creates excitement about you, as an author, as well as the continuation of a great story. And it will create reviews – good reviews – which are a great asset for any author, new or proven.

ARCs or Advance Reader Copies are another way to promote your book. An Advance Reader is someone who signs up to receive an early and free copy – usually an eBook – so they can read it and then write a review on the book. Remember, reviews are your friends and they’ll help the sales of your book(s). Google Advanced Readers and you’ll learn how to do this.

Lead magnet! What is a ‘lead magnet’ you might ask. Think of grocery stores that sell certain items for a very brief period of time for a price that is lower than their cost. It is advertised as a ‘loss leader’ or maybe just as a very low price. It is a key to drawing you into the store to pick up that item and maybe fill your basket while you are there. Obviously, it works or stores wouldn’t do them so why wouldn’t you do it for your book. If you don’t want to give a full copy of your book then maybe you can give away a short story or a novella to introduce yourself to the reading world. The idea is to build your email contact list so you’ll be able to reach out to your readers on a regular basis to keep them informed on what you are doing and writing.