Please, Judge a Book By Its Cover
Exercise #100 How Reader Expectations Affect Marketing
However you choose to fill them, those empty pages brim with potential - seize it!
Strategy:
Before a reader ever reads your prose, they need to find and choose your book from the countless other titles being sold. This exercise is designed to help writers understand and utilize genre-specific reader expectations in their marketing and presentation of a book. By focusing on elements like title, cover design, blurb, and ad copy, writers can learn how to attract their target audience effectively. This exercise also encourages reflection on how well their story aligns with genre conventions and provides an opportunity to research and compare with similar works in the market.
Instructions:
Choose Your Story and Genre: Think about the story you want to write. Identify its genre (e.g., fantasy, mystery, romance) and consider what specific expectations readers have for this genre.
Title Expectations: Reflect on the importance of titles in your chosen genre. Write down ideas for a title that fits your story and also aligns with genre expectations. Consider how titles in this genre often sound and what they hint at about the story.
Cover Design: Describe the ideal cover for your book. Think about common images, colors, and design tropes used in your genre. Sketch a rough design or write a detailed description of what it would look like.
Crafting the Blurb: Write a blurb for your book. Focus on what makes a blurb engaging in your genre. Does it reveal a mystery, hint at a romance, or promise an adventure? Make it as enticing as possible for a reader who loves this genre.
Ad Copy and Imagery (optional): Create a mock ad for your book. What kind of imagery and copy would attract a reader in your genre? Think about the key selling points that would make someone want to learn more.
Genre Alignment and Research (optional): Reflect on how well your story idea, title, cover, and blurb align with your genre's reader expectations. Then, research comparable books in your genre. Compare your ideas with real-world examples to see if they match or diverge from established norms.
Tags: genre, marketing, reader expectations, title, cover design, blurb, ad copy
Category: Publishing Your Writing > Promote Your Brand
Example:
Choose Your Story and Genre: My story is a fantasy adventure about a young mage discovering ancient magic. The fantasy genre often has expectations of magic, conflict, and a journey.
Title Expectations: Possible title: "Echoes of the Arcane". This fits the fantasy genre, hinting at magic and mystery.
Cover Design: The cover would feature a mystical, ancient tome with glowing runes, set against a backdrop of a shadowy forest. This fits the common fantasy theme of mystery and magic.
Crafting the Blurb: "When young mage Lira discovers an ancient tome, she's thrust into a world of forgotten magic and lurking dangers. Will she unlock the secrets before darkness engulfs her world?"
Ad Copy and Imagery (optional): The ad would show the mystical tome and a shadowed forest with the tagline: "Unlock the secrets of the Arcane". It promises mystery and adventure, key attractions for fantasy readers.
Genre Alignment and Research (optional): Reflecting on my choices, they seem to align well with fantasy genre expectations. Researching comparable fantasy books would help confirm if my approach fits current market trends.