Branding for Nonconformists

Building Your Brand by the Golden Rule

Grow your audience by adding value to your community

Photo by “My Life Through A Lens” on Unsplash

As much as we authors like to think we write first and foremost for our own enjoyment, let’s be frank: without an audience, our work is entirely self indulgent. In this fourth installment of Branding for Nonconformists we’ll be talking about fostering community — your community and others’, online and in real life — by cultivating genuine relationships with readers and colleagues. What do I mean by “genuine”? You like and respect your readers as creative human beings, not as members of your “following,” because you are a member of their “following” too. When a reader tells you how much your work means to them, you respond exactly as you’d hope one of your favorite authors would respond to you.

Now that we’ve made this essential clarification, let’s discuss three categories of book lovers:

1. People who already appreciate you.

2. People who don’t appreciate you.

3. People who will appreciate you once they find out about you.

People who already appreciate you.