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As we’ve been discussing book marketing so much over the last year or so, I wanted to step back a little this month and go back to the very reason why we need marketing, in the hope that we can identify the kind of strategies that will work for us. To do this we need to start at the beginning. Would it help if you had an understanding of the kind of campaign you will you'll require while still writing the book? Or do you prefer to focus on the writing now, and worry about the marketing later?

Arguably the latter is the option for most newbie authors, either that or (like me and my first novel, I just wanted to get the book finished) we have no idea of what marketing entails at this stage.

Depending on your reasons for writing your book, if this is a one-off memoir meant only for family and friends for example, you don’t have to worry about who your target audience will be. However, if you are writing in the fiction genre, or a series of children’s books or cookbooks, it will help to know who your audience is while you are writing the book because you will be able to write to the expectations and likes of that audience.

This is especially important for you budding children’s authors out there. You’ll need to know what age group you are writing for, and then produce a level of prose that is age?appropriate, meaning your words and phrasing will need to match the reading level for that age group.

If you are writing an Italian cookbook, you obviously need to be targeting readers who like Italian food. If you are writing murder mystery or romance, it will be helpful if you know the processes used by successful authors whose readers continue to buy their books.

Having said all this, I personally think of nothing else than the story while working on the first draft. This is when the creativity is at play. The thinking begins around drafts 2 and 3; however, from experience, I do have a knowledge of what my readers like, because I could easily be a member of my target audience. I like murder mystery, so I write what I would like to read.

Have a think about who the readers are that will purchase and enjoy your book. If you write in the vein of Jane Harper, Stephen King or Jamie Oliver, check out their books and how they write and present them. My advice is to keep it simple and easy to read.