I attended the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association conference this weekend, and dropped in on P. J. Campbell's workshop for authors. She's had extensive experience in all areas of publishing, including being an author and working at a bookstore, so she's seen many facets of the business and came armed with tons of info about how to successfully get your book out there. I'm not typically a fan of the "how-to" and "ten tips" lists, but her site has stuff I haven't seen elsewhere. One thing I learned was the time period for when a book is viable in the store after its release: the first 2-6 weeks are the most crucial and thereafter a total of 6 weeks to the end of 3 months, and then your book can be remaindered. What this points out is how critical it is to have an advance publicity push before your book hits the shelves, and to me, the necessity for either hiring a publicist or doing a whole lot of work yourself, if you're Type A and extroverted enough to handle the high degree of self-promotion required. Another point she made is how valuable relationships are in promoting your book, and especially how valuable a relationship with your local indie bookseller can be. I've seen this to be true for myself: being a member or a frequent buyer at a local store and getting to know the owner ahead of the time your book is even sold to a publisher can be a huge help by the time it's available for sale (many years later). And then here's a funny video by Dennis Cass she recommended, which says everything you need to know about taking advantage of FREE social media. Write your book, and then get ready for another kind of life altogether.