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Hurrah, you’ve published a book! Now all you need is some readers - other than your friends and relations.

"But I’m a writer, not a salesman!” is the common cry of the new self-published author (from behind the boxes of books piled up in his spare bedroom).

Not sure where to begin? This new handbook by an experienced writer and promoter will take you through all that you need to know to gain confidence and expertise in promoting your book. With abundant good humour and common-sense, it gives easy-to-follow instructions on everything from holding a local launch event to creating a worldwide author profile worldwide via the internet. This upbeat and supportive guide will be an invaluable addition to your writing reference library, to which you will return time and again.

Whether you’re new to the challenge of book promotion, or you just need some fresh ideas to shift your backlist, this new handbook will help you do what it says on the cover – SELL YOUR BOOKS!

Foreword by Dr Alison Baverstock Course Leader for MA Publishing at Kingston University.

This book is a SilverWood Original title.

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This book is also available for a wide range of e-readers including Kindle, iPad, Nook and Kobo.

Don’t be fooled by her name - Debbie Young is old enough to have had 30 years of experience in journalism, PR, marketing and publishing.

An enthusiastic writer and blogger, she now draws on all her past lives to help new authors sell their books through the services of her consultancy, Off the Shelf Book Promotions.

On the company's website, she runs a highly acclaimed, easy to follow blog of book promotion tips that supplement and complement the advice in "Sell Your Books!" The website also features thoughtful and extensive reviews of the works of self-published and independent authors, including many by SilverWood's clients.

She also writes a popular personal blog about village and family life called Young By Name.

She is currently working on a book that will bring together the best of her Young By Name posts and a collection of short stories inspired by listening to the radio entitled Tuning In. Both of these are due for publication in 2013. Debbie is an Author Member of the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi).

Born and raised in Sidcup, Kent, Debbie now lives in a small Gloucestershire village with her Scottish husband and their daughter. One day, she hopes to have read all the books on her "must read” list – and to catch up on her sleep.

25% of the author’s royalties from Sell Your Books! will be donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, working towards a cure for Type 1 Diabetes. Visit their site here.

'Concisely written and easy to follow, Young sets out… the reasons that books need (and deserve) promotion and selling; an explanation of the current books market with all its wonderful diversity; potential plans for a marketing and selling campaign; tips on how to identify markets for particular types of book; methods of getting to know target audiences; sensible advice on how to harness the power of the internet; advice on how to exploit other networks – like book fairs, library events, etc; cautionary notes on how to approach retailers; the production and organisation of promotional materials, book launches, signings and other events; ways to engage the media; budget considerations about what to spend in both money and time; and, finally, the all-important post-script. Young’s last chapters deal with the self-evident but often-forgotten fact that even the best marketing campaign won’t sell a book that’s got a duff jacket design and lots of typos – so a gentle but necessary reminder about the value of the "second edition”, as well as the need to maintain a campaign’s momentum once it’s begun.'
– David Ebsworth, author of The Jacobites' Apprentice

'This book ... provides motivating, practical and cheerful guidance on the process [of selling]. It raises the spirits and promotes author confidence. It’s an investment in your writing now – and your future development.'
– Dr Alison Baverstock, Course Leader for MA Publishing at Kingston University

'Debbie Young leaves no stone unturned in this excellent guide to promoting and selling books. She writes very well, offering clear and concise advice on the many aspects of social media including setting up your own website and the advantages of engaging on Facebook and Twitter. There are good suggestions too on how to use local media and also a comprehensive point by point model for the best way to approach the mainstream reviewers. A very useful handbook for any self-published author looking to increase book sales.'
– Helena Mallett

'Debbie Young writes in an engaging and authoritative manner, and clearly has many years of experience helping clients sell their books. Even though I know quite a lot about this topic already, and have tried many of the tasks in the book at one time or another, I still found lots here to inspire me and many techniques or ideas that I haven't yet tried. This book is informative, eminently useful to any author - self published or not - and manages to cover a wide range of topics without skimping on detail. An absolute must-buy for any new author, and a valuable resource for all.'
– Joanne Phillips – author of Can't Live Without

'Debbie Young writes in a friendly, engaging manner. It's like listening to advice from a friend rather than reading a textbook. Her wealth of experience in PR, marketing, publishing and journalism is obvious. She leads the reader through topics such as targeting markets, selling locally, harnessing the internet, pitching to a bookshop and much more. Well worth buying if you want to construct a proper sales campaign and give your book the push that it deserves.'
– Sally Jenkins – writer and blogger

Download the Advance Information (AI) Sheet here.