Tim Lebbon has been on a virtual Blog Tour to promote his latest book, The Island, out in hardback today. In his final blog, exclusive to SFX he looks back on the experience.

We’re also happy to present an exclusive extract from The Island (though it's strictly an 18-certificate – you have been warned)

Plus, SFX readers can order a copy of the hardback version of the book for half price. Check out the details for how at the bottom of the blog.

You can also enter a competition to win one of two signed copies of The Island by clicking here. Enter code (Answer): BOON

The Final Blog by Tim Lebbon

It’s never easy trying to think up new ways to promote a new book. Living in the UK and having been published almost exclusively in the USA for years, I’ve become used to doing most of my publicity on the net – websites, interviews, the occasional podcast. For one novel I started up a Street Team, and found their input and help invaluable (and I also enjoyed the beers some of them sent me… nice!) All publicity takes time, but it’s true what they say: the more you put in, the more your get out of it.

When Allison & Busby started publishing my fantasy novels in the UK, I was thrilled at the opportunity to do some publicity on my own ground. For Fallen (hardback) and The Everlasting last year, I launched the books at my favourite local bookstore, Abergavenny Bookshop, which resulted in some decent sales, old friends turning up out of the blue (including a former teacher I hadn’t seen for about 20 years), and a splendid afternoon had by all at the Hen & Chickens pub afterwards. This, I thought, is what book promotion is all about, and I tucked into another pint of Reverend James.

Now, with my brand new fantasy novel The Island out in hardback today, and Fallen already available as a mass market paperback, I wanted to do something more wide-reaching, and something a little different. I put my thinking cap on (it’s a Reverend James cap, of course)… but it was Chiara, my wonderful publicist at Allison & Busby, who came up with the idea of a Blog Tour.

And what fun we’ve had…

Now, it sounds easy, doesn’t it? So very different from a book tour. You can go from one blog to the next working from the comfort of your own desk, not having to worry about late trains, crappy hotels, no one turning up to a signing, living out of a suitcase and feasting on beer and curry every evening (all of which have happened)… but it’s not as easy as you might imagine. Sure, I still lived from a suitcase and survived on beer and curry, but that’s my fault entirely. Trying to conjure the mood of a book tour, that’s my excuse. But it’s not all plain sailing,

First, there’s the preparation (much of which, I’ll willingly admit, was done by Chiara). Deciding which blogs and websites to approach, finding their contact details (not so obvious, if you visit some of these sites), contacting them with a "pitch" about what the tour is all about, waiting for responses, then setting up a schedule that allows for a couple of hour’s sleep here and there over the space of the three weeks it took.

It was great hearing reaction for the people who run these websites — universally positive. I don’t think this Blog Tour was the first ever (though Chiara’s still a genius for thinking it up, and anyone who says otherwise can meet me outside after school for a scrap), but the concept is still fresh enough to pique interest, and that led to some wonderful co-operation from the bloggers and web-guys. Because it wasn’t just a simple "appearance" on their blog. There was a specific extract to run for each blog, a competition with a specific code word for each blog, and a copy of Fallen to give away.

And then there’s the stuff that I did. Now then, I love doing interviews. And I enjoy talking about the writing process (though I wouldn’t say I love it… there’s always an element of deconstruction that makes me a little uncomfortable and, well, vulnerable – hey, I’m a writer, you expect me to be normal?) But in the space of just under three weeks I’ve done four quite lengthy interviews and (including this one) five blogs. That’s as well as trying to keep up with writing, family, the kids’ half-term and all the normal things that tend to get in the way of a writer’s life (you know, sleeping, eating, talking with people, going outside, that sort of stuff). But generally I kept on top of things, and I think there was quite a good spread of blogs and interviews.

Reaction seemed pretty good. People emailed me here and there throughout the tour, commented on the blogs (which I think most people enjoyed reading), and we had almost 100 entries for the competition. But it’s far more difficult tracking the effectiveness of a promotional campaign like this than seeing how well a physical signing works. Do an event in a bookshop and by the end of the night you’ll know how many books you’ve sold. But something like a Blog Tour is, I think, much more about just connecting with people — either those who’ve already bought and read your books, or those who might be interested in doing so — and getting the books out there in front of people who might not have otherwise heard about them. The effectiveness of that will take some time to assess, and it’s a much more long-term effort. Book signings are immediate: if someone leaves the signing having not bought your book, it’s doubtful they will in the future. Just there for the free wine, obviously. A Blog Tour is much more a case of "spread the word" than "hard sell".

Most of all, I had a load of fun doing this… and Chiara did all the hard work, really. All I had to do was answer interviews questions and write blogs on stuff I love doing/love having done. Not much of a trial really… though I am almost sick of all that beer and curry. But only almost. I am a writer, you know.

I’d recommend this type of book promotion to anyone. Obviously, if it becomes more familiar and more widely practised, it’ll lose it’s almost unique impact. But what’s not to like? It’s an environmentally friendly book tour, the interviews reveal some hopefully interesting and new facts about the writer and work (the interviews here were particularly incisive and well-researched), the blogs are a window into the writer’s mind… and there are books to win and extracts to read.

I’m looking forward to the next hi-tech Blog Tour… and now that I’ve bought myself a nice little Acer netbook, I’ll probably go retro and drag it from coffee shop, to pub, to restaurant.

Finally, here’s a recap of where the tour has been. You can still go back and check out the blogs and interviews, and I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I did working on them:

11th May - My Favourite Books
13th May - Allison & Busby
15th May - Highlander’s Book Reviews
17th May - Falcata Times
20th May - Speculative Horizons
23rd May - Fantasy Book Spot
25th May - Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review
27th May - Mad Hatter's Bookshelf & Book Review

Happy reading!

ORDER YOUR HALF PRICE COPY OF THE ISLAND
The hardback copy of The Island normally retails for £19.99, but SFX readers can nab one for a mere tenner thanks to this special offer from publisher Allison & Busby. All you have to do is buy it online here and submit promotional code SFX50 in your shopping basket to get their discount. Or call the sales team on 0207 580 1080 and quote the code over the phone.