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Reviewed by Jack Magnus for Readers' Favorite
How I Sold 80,000 Books: Book Marketing for Authors (Self Publishing through Amazon and Other Retailers) is a business/finance self-help book written by Alinka Rutkowska. The author writes children's books and has been an independent publisher as well as a coach for authors seeking to do the same. She introduces her topic with a word most of the non-business savvy world cringes from: marketing. And she discusses how marketing should begin almost before an author starts writing and certainly before selecting a title. Rutkowska presents the four Ps that are the ingredients to success in marketing an indie book. They are Product, Place, Price and Promotion. She thoroughly discusses each of these aspects of marketing, and illustrates each topic with examples from her experiences and useful links. In the section on Product, Rutkowska discusses the editing process and the three types of editors needed for any text before publication. In Promotion, she discusses giveaways and other promotional tools designed to make your book sell. She also includes a list of recommended readings and a bonus section containing six interviews with established authors who discuss their marketing strategies and their paths to success.
Alinka Rutkowska's business/finance self-help book, How I Sold 80,000 Books: Book Marketing for Authors (Self Publishing through Amazon and Other Retailers) is a veritable textbook for aspiring indie authors. The material presented within is densely packed and loaded with ideas, strategies and essential tips that are neatly organized, packaged and imparted in a conversational and highly accessible manner. And that's no mean feat for a book that has so much to offer. Rutkowska suggests that readers read this book several times, especially when they're preparing a book for publication, something she herself does, and I would have to agree.
I was very impressed with Rutkowska's coverage of her topic. While I've read a number of books on independent publishing, I've not encountered as complete and user-friendly a work on the marketing aspect. I found her presentation of her subject to be enthusiastic and entertaining. Rutkowska manages to infect her readers with the joy she takes in tackling the challenges of marketing a publication and making it into a best-seller. She even simplifies the intricacies of Amazon's publishing options and discusses the pros and cons of those somewhat arcane and complicated schemes. How I Sold 80,000 Books: Book Marketing for Authors (Self Publishing through Amazon and Other Retailers) is now my go-to book on the subject and it's most highly recommended.