“An author needs a brand to attract their ideal reader…” This was just one of many gems that Isabelle Knight shared with The Silverwood Champions at a recent workshop. A well known and highly respected publicist, Isabelle explained the importance of an author’s brand.

Your readers are buying you, not your book. Gosh, this is a difficult concept to grasp and maybe I haven’t quite grasped it yet, but I am working on it…
“Your reader needs to emotionally connect with you and your story…” In my own words my readers need to know what it is in my life that makes me what I am and influences my writing. Do they find me an interesting and credible person? Are my personal values aligned with theirs? Do they like me as a person? Will they look out for my next book because of who I am, as well as the stories I write?
So, I have started on the journey of creating my brand! My first task has been to jot down the story of my life together with examples which have led me to where I am now. When I did this a few days ago, I surprised myself at the range of life experiences I had had. But what cropped up repeatedly was that over the past twenty years, both consciously and subconsciously, I had been a carer, and that I had grown to respect and empathise with those less fortunate than myself, and my elders. When I look back at my second and third novels, The Silver Sting and The Silver Dollar, I can see that both exemplify those values.
The second task (ongoing) is to edit my story and get down to a core story about me. Once I have this, then I can check that it is reflected in my website and in my bios, and I can ensure that it in accurately reflected in any dealings I have with the media.
I’ve started by looking back at my website and making some small changes to my Welcome Page and to my About Me page. I’d be interested to know if you’d buy a book from me! Visit angeladandy.com.