I often suggest that a hopeful author of a nonfiction book start speaking and presenting workshops (where appropriate) before they actually write the book. Not only is it a good way to determine whether your book idea is a good one, this will help you to focus clearly on the book that is most needed/desired by your audience.
You’ll receive feedback that is worth paying attention to. If you can’t attract enough people to your weight-loss, self-esteem, anti-bullying or fall gardening workshop, perhaps your planned book isn’t such a good idea. You might want to tweak it to more appropriately fulfill your audience’s needs.
Conducting workshops and getting out and speaking on your topic will also help you with name recognition. People will be more willing to purchase your book if they already know and trust you. If you also provide a signup sheet where you speak, you’ll have a leg up when it comes to promoting your book. You’ll have the names and contact info for dozens or hundreds of people who are interested. You will have a following even before you have a book to sell.
So how can you prepare for your speaking/workshop debut?
• Join a Toastmasters Club and/or a storytelling group in order to hone your speaking skills.
• Practice speaking at work, during committee meetings, etc. If you are a little timid about speaking up, join a writers group, a committee or a special task force at work and be verbally involved.
• Create speeches and present them in front of your family or a patient friend. I used to practice presentations for the benefit of my cats.
• Attend other presentations and pay close attention to what is working and what isn’t. Incorporate the positive aspects into your presentations.
• Design a workshop, where appropriate. If your book has a how-to aspect and/or it is conducive to a lesson plan, for example, create a workshop using your book as the text. You may need to do a little experimenting in the process of developing an effective workshop.
• Learn from each presentation. Listen to the feedback. Pay attention to the demeanor of your audience. Are they interested in what you’re saying or eager for the program to end? Do they pay closer attention to some topics more than others? Gear your presentations to what you know your audience wants.
For some books, live author appearances are the best selling method. If your book fits into this category, you’ll most definitely want to hone your speaking and presentation skills.
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