One of the hardest things about publishing a book is coming to terms with the fact that while you are bursting with excitement about your accomplishment (and rightly so!), the vast majority of the world . . . isn’t. Unfortunately, for most people your book is just one of the hundreds of thousands released each year. They have no personal reason to care about it, so they don’t.

People who do have a reason to care about your book, in addition to your relatives, close friends, barber, etc., are those who went to the same school as you. They care because they can share your sense of accomplishment. It’s pride by association! 

Here are two ways you can leverage your school’s network to spread the word about your book:

• Alumni magazine: Send a little blurb about your book to the “class updates” editor. Send a headshot too. They may or may not include it, but you never know, so it can’t hurt. 
• Regional alumni groups: Many schools have alumni clubs all across the country, and some of those clubs have individual newsletters and/or Facebook groups. You may not live in those cities, but they will still want to hear from you. And if you visit those areas, offer to speak to the group about the writing process/getting a book published! You may not think you know enough to speak to a group, but trust me, you do. Bring books to the event to sign and sell, and be sure to have a sign-up sheet for your mailing list so you can capture email addresses.

Alumni networks want to hear about the cool things their fellow (insert name of mascot here) are doing. So tell them. Go Lions! Go Tigers! Go Bears! You get the picture.

-Maria

Maria Murnane writes bestselling novels about life, love and friendship. Have questions? You can find her at www.mariamurnane.com.