Defining & Developing Your Author Brand

Authors are diverse in how they perceive themselves as creators. Some envision themselves as loners, satisfied behind the keyboard while letting book distributors handle the sales aspects, leaving them to crank out story after story—music playing alongside a cup of tea and no interruptions. Others picture themselves as quasi-movie stars, being seen, being courted, being idolized as miracle workers on the page with a horde of fans in their wake, organized by some public relations guru.

Neither one is anywhere near reality.

Once upon a time an author could write and remain rather reclusive, but these days, in light of social media, podcasts, and all-things-electronic, there must be human presentation. We could go into the whole AI business of made-up authors, but to be honest, a reader appreciates being a fan of a creator.

Just as with musicians and their songs, an author must be the identity behind the product. And it’s up to the author to carve out that image.

Author Name Matters

Not every author has a name that resonates on the cover of a book. With the millions of authors’ names out there, a name (or pen name) becomes incredibly important, and is not a decision to be made quickly or lightly.

Your author name, once used, becomes part of your brand and quite difficult to change.

Plug your name in a search engine and see what pops up. Then try different versions of your real name.

• How many are authors?

• How many are more famous for anything which takes attention away from you?

• If your name is too similar to someone else’s, play around with initials, or middle names, or maiden names if you wish, to keep things real.

But what if your name is long, difficult to spell, or a name easily confused with another spelling? Which country are you publishing in, and who is your primary market? You might consider a version of your name that works best with your primary reader.

If you consider a pen name, note the pros and cons. Pen names are used for specific reasons such as:

• An author’s real name is too difficult to spell, confusing, or doesn’t search well.

• An author deviates from their normal genre into another.

  • This different genre needs to be quite diverse from the original, with the author usually having to define a new market. Otherwise, use the same pen name or start from square one in branding and developing a following.

• An author wants to differentiate between their non-author profession and their writing world. For instance, a first-grade teacher writing romance.

Write it in different fonts. Speak it aloud. Listen to others speak it. Live with it a bit.

Your author name, real or pen, is a commitment. Choose wisely.

Defining the Author

Often it takes writing a book to better understand your place as an author. The trial and error, the struggle and joy, the creation and editorial destruction of words mold you along the way. Take note of those stages in your development.

• What is the joy you find in the process of writing?

• What is the joy you find in the storytelling?

• What is the joy you find in the birthing of it to the world?

Those realizations help you feed your writing soul and perpetuate you forward into writing more works. Those realizations also come through when you're appearing in podcasts or speaking to a book club. The joys of writing are the foundation of who you are and how you appear to the world. One of the biggest compliments you can receive from a reader is that they admire your apparent devotion.

Now that you love what you do, carve out your brand. Again, giving brand justice often comes after having written a book. Consider the components that can comprise your author brand.

• YOUR MARKET

  • While you’d like to write a story loved by all, it’s impossible. You want to become intimate with your tribe. Who will be your fans? Who is your tribe? You want to enjoy these people and relate to them.

• CONSISTENCY

  • Once a reader falls in love with you, they hope you'll keep showing up, delivering more like that with which they fell in love. Being too diverse in your genres and book styles can actually deter readers and dilute your brand. Keep showing up writing the solid style that attracted readers in the first place.

• RELIABLE

  • You keep showing up at the keyboard, keep writing, and keep producing for the reader. One book does not make a brand. Readers are eager to find authors they can return “home” to.

• TAGLINE

  • Condense who you are and what you write in a one-liner, similar to the logline for a book. For instance,

Use the following parameters in a tagline:

• No more than 10 words, preferably less. (C. Hope Clark: “Justice Her Way”)

• Think advertising slogan. (New York Times: “All the news that’s fit to print.”)

• Think genre and emotion. (Clive Cussler: “The Grandmaster of Adventure.”)

• Think core philosophy. (Michael Connelly “Mysteries where everybody counts or nobody counts.”)

Struggling with your tagline? Check out our guide on How Readers Actually Search for Books to align your brand with reader intent.

Building the Brand

Define your basics and build up. These range from concepts to visuals. When your name is mentioned, images and persona should come to mind.

• Tie down your tagline.

• Define your author brand story.

  • Why do you write?

  • How did you get started?

  • Was there a defining moment?

  • Was there a catalyst?

  • What drives you?

  • What is unique about how you write, where you write, or when you write? 

You don’t need all of these, and you don’t want to include anything mundane or dull. Cull the good stuff and define your story.

CREATE THE VISUALS

• Have some great headshots taken.

• Be consistent in your color scheme on your website.

• Be something that comes to mind when your name is mentioned.

BUILD A WEBSITE AND AT LEAST TWO SOCIAL MEDIA LOCATIONS

Be consistent with all your branding effort across these platforms.

• Use your visuals.

• Keep the platforms current. Weekly updates are needed as a minimum.

• Keep your readers informed.

• Be real. Show yourself doing human things like dog walking, gardening, hiking, attending a concert, enjoying life. Make yourself enviable.

BECOME A CHARACTER YOURSELF

• Are you dark or light, gory or clean, wholesome or rowdy?

• Do you lean humorous, authoritative, inspirational, or act as a fighter for the underdog? Your media, social media, and website should follow your style.

BUT BE GENUINE

How you are depicted online is hopefully how you’ll be seen in person. You must be believable not only to the reader but to the people you meet. Maybe a little bigger than life, but reliable and true, not someone with shallow entertainment value. Plus, being genuine means there’s no façade to maintain.

Authenticity is a valuable commodity these days.

YOUR FIRST BOOK IS YOUR ANCHOR BOOK

This book becomes the go-to book for new readers. Even if they discovered you in the middle of a series, they’ll return to Book One to be a part of the original journey. Release this first book as though you’ll be judged on it forever, because you will. Release it after lots of thought and editing, putting your best foot forward.

ENGAGE

The best branding in the world can't replace engagement. Whether responding on a blog, answering email, commenting on social media, talking live on a podcast, speaking from behind a podium, or seated around a table with a book club, you must be relatable. Make eye contact, smile, and immerse yourself into the commitment. Your readers must feel you are approachable. Everyone is a potential admirer, and by you addressing their question, appreciating their concern, or simply thanking them from your heart, you collect a fan base. If they love how you treated them, they tell others.

Branding is way more than bookmarks and banners and how well you decorate your table at a fair. Personality and consistency matter a lot in the short run, but especially in the long run. Becoming an author who is reliable and diligent carries so much more weight and gives incredible momentum over time.

The energy you feed yourself through your mindset and brand can be felt by the public. Embrace that energy with enthusiasm and commitment, and the public will embrace you.