By Kristy Tate //
The holidays loom on our horizon. We may think that between now and the close of 2020, there are only four: Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve. But there are, in fact, many more.
There’s All Saints’ Day, the Marine Corps Birthday, Diwali, and just to be super confusing, the state of Indiana celebrates Lincoln’s birthday in November. Nevada celebrates Family Day on the same day Maryland and Washington observe National Native American Heritage Day (November 27). There’s Rosa Park’s Day, St. Nicolas Day, Pearl Harbor Observance Day, Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and Chanukah/Hanukkah. Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, National Guard Birthday, Bill of Rights Day, Pan American Aviation Day, Wright Brothers Day, Last Day of Chanukah, and, finally, Winter Solstice. And those are just for the last two months of the year (that has given us little reason to celebrate.)
You may also think that these holidays have nothing to do with book marketing, and you may be right. It’s completely up to you what you do with them. But why not use them to start a conversation? Run a contest? Or write a blog post?
I love the holidays. I have written several Christmas novellas. Most of these were written for the Authors on Main Street box sets that I’ve participated in for the last several years. They’re short, sweet, and Hallmarky. They’re also some of my bestsellers. Recently, I made this book trailer for one of my Christmas books, The Little White Christmas Lie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTmTSmAwsUs&t=13s
You may think that no one wants to read a holiday book in August, but look at the success of the 1993 movie Groundhog Day. Can you imagine anyone saying, “It’s the middle of August, I can’t watch a movie that takes place in February”?
This year, I plan on throwing a 12 Days of Christmas newsletter campaign. From December 12th until the 24th, I’ll be sending out a daily newsletter with a link to a free or a bargain book and a recipe. I’m debating on first asking my list on whether they want to participate or not.
How about you? Do you have any tricks on how to use the holidays to market your book? I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions.
KRISTY TATE is the Social Media Director for O.C. Writers and a USA Today bestselling author. To date, her newsletter subscriber list is edging toward 15,000. www.KristyTate.com.
Wonderful tips, Kristy. And there’s also National Candy Day on November 4. What a fabulous opportunity to promote a sweet romance!