Book clubs are powerful things.
With their origins in 18th century Paris salons and Victorian parlors, they have long been in the public consciousness, and their sales power reflects their deep-seated place in our culture. An “Oprah’s Book Club” sticker artfully placed on a cover pretty much guaranteed a work’s NYT Bestseller status during the Oprah Winfrey Show’s run.
Even now, when more people communicate online, book clubs have adapted and have taken to the internet as forums.
A book club ensures that a group of people will all buy your book, read it simultaneously, and then talk about it. They automatically take the solitary act of reading, and by their very design, turn it social. And as we know, word of mouth is the number one way to get your book into the hands of readers.
When the members of a club are reading your book, or have to turn down an engagement because book club is scheduled that night, others are intrigued. They ask what the person is reading, and if they enjoy it, because a book club book is perceived as something of quality and something worth reading.
A book recommendation born out of a book club carries more weight than a regular recommendation.
After all, why would a group of people spend a few hours every month talking about a boring, badly written book? There had to have been some reason why it was picked in the first place!
But with so many books to choose from, getting your book picked as a book club book is hard, if not impossible.
Here are some tried and true ways of making your book appeal to the book club crowd:
- Offer a deal.
Discount your book for bulk book club orders—say, if your book retails for $15.99, sell it for $10/book for 10 books.
- Add in a bonus.
Offer, on top of a discount, a 30-minute skype or in-person Q&A session for the book club. It’ll give them something extra to break up the monotony of sitting in a circle and talking about a work’s climax.
- Write your own discussion questions.
Put them in the back of the book, or in an easily-downloadable pdf on your website or facebook page. When writing questions, focus on themes and character development, rather than plot.
- Include some extra content.
Got a scene that didn’t make it on the cutting room floor? What about a related short story? Give book clubs these as bonuses, and then write some questions about how that content changes our view of some aspect of the book.
Writers, do you have any more tips on how to appeal to book clubs?
Awesome tips for appealing to book clubs!
Those are great suggestions. I never thought of providing a list of questions for discussion. That is a great thing to add to my website. Thanks.