You Have To Hype Yourself. No One Else Will Do It For You.
No, you can’t just write and they’ll come.
I‘ve been writing on the internet for more than three years now.
I went from being a nobody to somebody who would talk with top writer
, who is living proof that living off writing is not fiction, via Zoom.In our chat, we agreed that we never were one of those folks who thought you could create it and they would come.
In our interview, which I’ll share in a few days, you’ll also learn that Ayo wouldn’t have done the interview with me if he hadn’t “seen” and “heard” me on Medium.
A lot of writers believe that their writing is so good that it will, literally, speak for itself.
We knew it was not enough to be a good writer and improve your craft.
If the quality is there, we would make a lot of money.
Most writers are missing out on hyping themselves
I think many people are talented at writing (without knowing it). But what they’re missing is to be influential and build a community which is more important than ever before.
You will attract people with the “build it and they will come“mentality.
But you will attract even more people if you hype yourself!
If you promote and sell (I said it!) your writing.
Don’t be a fantastic writer that isn’t seen
Don’t shake your head now.
As an award-winning brand manager in the corporate world, I’m a marketer at heart. I can’t do anything about it.
Ayo also once worked in an agency so we know there’s more to success online.
I believe there are fantastic writers out there who aren’t seen!
They are still in their 9–5 although they could write bestselling books.
What’s the difference between those nobodies (who would become superstars) and others who become successful?
They hype themselves!
No one else will hype you
Truth is, no one will do it for you.
Of course, the platform you’re writing on might recommend your work because it rewards quality, someone mentions you in a newsletter or you get featured in a media outlet, but we’re talking about taking action.
Not only putting pen to paper but doing some marketing (it’s not a bad word, trust me!) for yourself.
This means you know there’s a specific market for your writing for you as a writer. You know your ideal reader and writer content for this one person.
Attract your ideal reader to be seen
This one person could be Ralf. Ralf is 35 years old, has two kids, and wants to quit his 9–5 for his passion project, writing.
So you want to encourage Ralf to take action. Right now.
To attract Ralf you need a game plan because Ralf will probably never hear about you and your amazing and inspiring work.
Just wanting people to read your work isn’t enough.
There are trillions of writers who don’t get the credit they deserve.
They are missing out and that’s what helps others to rise to the top.
Don’t be the “typical” writer
The typical writer I meet in my coaching sessions is an artist. Someone who doesn’t really see how amazing he is.
Someone who is either lazy or simply doesn’t want to promote his work.
Tell me, do you want to stand up and say:
“Hello! I’m here! Check out my work!”
I bet you don’t want to hype yourself
And that’s the big problem
From the beginning, I started to share my small wins, successes, and failures with the writing community.
I knew if I wanted some attention, I needed to hype myself because no one else would do it for me.
That’s how I went from zero to almost 12K followers on Medium.
From rock bottom to 2K subscribers on YouTube (and got monetized).
Nothing to 6K subscribers and more than 170 paid subscribers on Substack.
Here’s how I hype myself and you can too
I shout about progress every chance I get.
I shout about small wins every chance I get.
I talk about my testimonials and their success stories whenever I can
See?
That’s how I promote myself.
I inspire others by sharing my growth stories in public
I’m not sharing this to brag, I’m sharing this to inspire others.
And that’s exactly what people are telling me.
“You inspired me to…, Kristina!”
Who would have thought?
I know from the feedback I receive that I could help so many writers keep going and pushing — even when it’s hard.
No one said it was easy to write part-time on the internet.
Marketing is important for writers to be successful
So when talking with Ayo I also felt in my body how he’s seeing marketing and promotion.
It’s a vehicle that helps him amplify his message, get attention, and get more people to see his work.
Why not try to spend 1% hyping yourself?
If you feel good about it 10x and then maybe even more.
That’s not only how all those “I make x amount of money…” stories are born.
This is how my friend
promotes herself and her books on Substack and Notes. Thus she keeps selling her “Lemon Tree Mindset” via Amazon KDP
Veronica Llorca-Smith …. and got a book deal with Penguin Random House (!), which she’ll tell us more about in our interview this June!
This is how 6-figure freelance Fiverr writer and mompreneur
gained 5K followers within a few months on Medium, get featured in Medium’s biggest publication, Start it up, and (I bet) will reach 10K followers-year on Medium.That’s how I leveled up my writing business and added a membership, YouTube channel and coachings to the mix and tripled my revenue.
Exercise: Tell the world about your achievements
Here’s an easy exercise for you.
If you want to become a successful online writer, tell us in the comments about your achievements! Any win is a win.
It feels uncomfortable.
You might feel you shouldn’t have to.
You might think: I believe in my writing. Marketing: not so much.
You don’t want to sound salesy.
But tell me if you’re not going to shout about your writing, who will?
Or as tribe member
heard it from a colleague:“Marketing is the relationships you have around your business.”
Some WOW-worthy “Hype Yourself” examples from our “Online Writing Club” community
My most recent accepted pitch (final draft accepted but not yet published) earned me $1/word, so almost $1K for one article.
“Two of my recent articles have been boosted and I published a book on Amazon—Who’s Tougher Than Us? The Realities of Teaching.”
“Finally! I got boosted for the first time!”
“Had my story boosted through a publication recommended by Kristina.” Mark Palmer
or
My friend
is on fire! She was 15/100 in her category on Amazon…
… plus, she was featured in the newsletter of
invited tribe member on her podcast and has amazing plans for the upcoming months.Tribe member Neela shared:
Of course, there are many more from
Success stories inspire and engage others and make them click that follow or subscribe button!
That’s why inside my membership experience I have a space called “Wins & Successes” where my tribe members share their wins, no matter how small or big.
Don’t hide your writing in the dark basement of the internet or the dark recesses of your basement tucked away in cardboard boxes no one will ever see.
Cheers to what’s to come this “Hype Yourself Month” with
and many more!You deserve to get paid to be you, be seen and heard.
All the best,
P.S. Liked it? Could you do me a favor and like and re-stack my post? This way you help a solo writing business owner to be seen and heard and help more people like you. Thanks so much!
P.S. S. Don’t forget to share your Wins & Successes with us in the comments or restack this post and share your success stories so we can celebrate you.
I see you, seeing me! Okay, I'm rising to your invitation! In the last week, I have two new paid subscribers (bless!) and a new paying coaching client who found me through Substack! I'm celebrating this! 🍾
Thanks for mentioning my comment. I just restacked your post with a note about my latest win: high praise for my “Nature + Nurture”ebook (https://wendigordon.gumroad.com/l/mdryi ).
I
was ecstatic to read health writer Maggie Aime’s recent description of it:
“It’s a beautiful piece of work that combines Wendi’s gorgeous nature photos (she’s a skilled photographer, too!!) with wisdom inspired by the great outdoors.
… A bold reminder to shed that suffocating mold of conformity. Chase authenticity. Let your true, unapologetic self shine, quirks and all ('cause we all have them).
… So, join me, and let's show Wendi some love and support for her groundbreaking work. It’s that good!
I’m a fan! Bravo, Wendi!”