As an author, you need to find ways to promote your own book these days. There are the usual social media sites and conventions/book signings, of course. But if you are an introvert or have social anxiety, those options seem rather daunting. Asking book bloggers is one way to promote your book, as long as you follow their guidelines. But that may not be enough. The more ways you can find to promote your book the better, and sometimes you need to think outside the box.

Here is a suggestion for you. Quite a few book bloggers do author interviews. Speaking from experience, we love doing author interviews. You can do a written one or over the phone. Not only will they post their interview blog to all their facebook book groups, but to their social media sites as well, since they need to promote their blog too. Then, you have the option to promote that blog to your social media sites as well. So it is a win-win for both of you.

As a reader, I can tell you that we all love to get details about our favorite authors, sometimes the juicier the better. What better way to get that info than to read author interviews? Of course, you don’t have to answer the questions that you aren’t comfortable with, you should never feel pressured into sharing things you don’t want too. But when your fans find out about your life, it makes them feel you are actually human and not just a name.

You can do interviews in other places too, such as a newspaper or on your own website. So, you don’t really need to be social unless you want to be.

As a book blogger, I should give you some pointers. The best way to ask for an interview is to go to their website and send a message through their contact form, that way they will see it. Some emails get so much spam that your email could get lost if sent the normal way. Make sure you read their review policy, some may not have time for interviews, they may mention it or not. If they turn you down, please don’t get discouraged, they may not have the time or only do certain genres. And please, thank them for taking the time to promote you, since they don’t get paid. They mostly like to be acknowledged from time to time, to know they are appreciated.

Sometimes in life, you just need to think outside the box. Don’t be afraid to take chances, you just might be pleasantly surprised. Plus, you might just make a few new friends as well as more fans in the process. It is a shame that they don’t have PRs anymore and that Amazon makes it hard for indie authors; another reason why you need to think outside the box. Maybe someday it will get easier for authors. Good luck to you, and hopefully I’ll be reading your interviews soon.