Why Writers are Afraid to Market themselves and How to Overcome this Fear
Become a fearless self-promoter
I’m an introvert through and through.
I would rather just be alone in my room and write my stories. Hell, it took a lot of courage to even publish my work online for the first time.
What do you mean I have to promote my work?
I thought books were supposed to sell themselves as soon as you finish writing them. I thought people would be dying to read my blog without me having to tell them anything.
No, I’m not being funny. This was my mindset a few years ago.
Many writers have the same mentality. Maybe even you.
Interacting with people, marketing your work, and putting yourself out there feels like walking on glass with your bare feet.
It’s quite a strange feeling. On one hand, you believe in your craft and feel like you have something to offer the world. But then when you have to show it, you shrivel in cowardice—utterly paralyzed by fear.
It’s probably why so many writers don’t want to self-publish. They have a lot of anxiety about marketing their books. So they think that a traditional publisher would do the marketing for them so they can concentrate on the writing part.
I have bad news for you. No matter what publishing path you take, or what kind of writer you are, only one person is responsible for promoting your work.
YOU.
Sure, a traditional publisher might invest in marketing your books because they believe it will make them profit. But it’s still on you to promote your brand as much as you can.
Unfortunately, this sounds exhausting to many writers. All we want to do is write, and marketing seems to get in the way of that.
It’s just not our forte, we say. We will forever suck at self-promotion.
Where does this problem come from?
It all starts in the mind — our perception of the world and ourselves.
This might sound cliche, but the way you see yourself shapes every decision you make in your life. Mindset is very powerful. If you have limiting beliefs about who you are, it will forever rule your life.
On social media, writers announce — almost with gleeful pride — how terrible they are at self-promotion. As if that makes them more creative in some way. They’re just not born with the marketing gene. Nothing they do will change that. Writing is all that matters to them. To hell with self-promotion.
I’m not trying to knock anyone down. I used to be this kind of writer too. But the truth is that it’s only a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Unless you change that narrative about yourself, you’ll always be terrible at marketing.
No matter how good your writing is, no one will know about it unless you make a calculated effort to share it with the world.
Yes, you’re an introvert, and you’re probably too shy to do it. But that’s not the problem. The problem is that you automatically interpret introversion as a liability to marketing.
As someone who suffered from extreme social anxiety, I let this control me for so many years until I finally took control.
Just because you struggle with something doesn’t mean you should let it have power over you. Absolutely not.
Putting yourself out there is not easy. I get it. It’s terrifying. But like most things in life, marketing is a skill. And skills are developed over time through deliberate practice.
Yes, some people may have a natural affinity for it because they can easily talk to others. But that doesn’t mean you can’t learn it if you lack it.
You need a profound mindset and skillset shift to make that happen.
1. Embrace the identity of a writer
I’ve been writing ever since I learned to use a pencil. But it wasn’t until the beginning of 2023 that I finally gained the courage to fully accept that I was indeed a writer. I suffered from impostor syndrome and felt that I couldn’t possibly be a writer because I wasn’t earning money from it at the time.
This is something many writers struggle with. Maybe even you.
Just because you’re not making money from writing doesn’t mean you’re not a writer. As long as you’re writing, then you’re a writer.
Always remember this.
Remind yourself every day that you are a writer. When someone asks you what you do, tell them you’re a writer. And when they ask you what you write, don’t shy away from talking about your blog, books, short stories, or whatever it is you write.
Don’t downplay your ability either
Don’t say you’re not good enough. Sure, maybe that’s true. But you’re doing your best at the moment, and that’s all that matters. You just have to keep going.
In the beginning, you’ll feel like a fraud. And that’s fine. With time, calling yourself a writer will come naturally to you.
Now you’re probably wondering how that helps you overcome the fear of marketing yourself.
You’re always marketing
Whether you like it or not, you are always marketing yourself. Unfortunately, you’re probably marketing the wrong things.
When you talk to people, everything you tell them about yourself is marketing. Everything. Maybe you’re not trying to make money or whatever, but you’re still selling an idea of who you are to them.
We often try to promote the things we love to our friends and family, convincing them to try the same things too.
Whether it’s books, movies, shows, food, or whatever. We’re always trying to influence people to like what we like. Consciously or unconsciously.
Don’t believe me? Take a moment to think about it.
How many times have people tried to convince you to watch a certain movie or try a certain food? Many times, right? That’s marketing.
It’s about persuasion. And if you’ve been able to persuade someone to try a food they hate, and then end up loving it, then you’re a much better marketer than you think.
Apply this same energy to promoting your brand.
If you have a blog and want more people to read it, then tell more people. Whether in your real life or online. Add a link to your work or portfolio on all your social media accounts.
Don’t deprecate yourself. It’s not a sign of humility. It’s a sign of low self-esteem.
Are your stories amazing? Fucking own it. And say it out loud with your whole chest.
I’m not saying you should inflate your skills. But don’t sell yourself short either. Be confident in your current skill level, and always remember that with more practice, you’ll get better in the future.
2. Remind yourself that you’re always improving your craft
If you’re not confident in your writing skills, then that’s probably because you don’t think you’re good at it yet. This is normal.
Competence is directly proportional to confidence.
If you’re bad at playing the keyboard, you won’t have the confidence to play at a conference. If you’re a terrible singer, you’ll lack the confidence to sing before an audience.
And of course, if you think your writing isn’t good enough, you’ll fear publishing or promoting yourself.
I get it. But listen, it doesn’t have to be like that.
Just because you suck right now doesn’t mean you’ll suck forever. As long as you’re deliberately studying and practicing your craft, you’ll get better every day.
One of the best ways to know that you’re improving is by getting feedback. In other words, putting yourself out there. Publishing online is the fastest way to do this.
Don’t let the fear of people judging how bad you are stop you.
You cannot possibly be great without being terrible first.
So write whatever you want.
Publish your stories on Medium, Wattpad, Inkitt, or whatever social media platform you prefer.
Stop worrying about what people think. No one cares. And if they do care enough to tell you what they think, take constructive feedback to improve your craft.
The rest is noise; ignore it accordingly.
3. Learn to Copywrite
Excellent copywriting is the closest thing to being a god. No, seriously.
Anyone who can use the power of words to persuade people to take action can do anything. This is copywriting. To become an effective marketer, you must learn this skill.
I don’t make the rules… Actually, I do. Learn it.
As a copywriter, you don’t even have to worry about talking to other people in person just to sell books. Writing is all you need. Whether in the form of emails, landing pages, blog posts, sales pages, lead magnets, and so much more. The more you refine your skills, the better you get at promoting yourself and eventually making sales.
Most importantly, you cement your brand in the minds of your audience. And that’s worth more than anything.
When you combine this skill with growing an email list, you’ll become unstoppable.
How do you learn copywriting?
For such a powerful skill, it’s much easier to learn than you think.
I started with YouTube.
Watch as many videos on the topic as can. Read books, blog posts, newsletters, and everything you get your hands on. Consume all the knowledge you find.
Knowledge consumption, however, is merely the first stage of the learning process. That alone is not enough.
Copywriting is a practical skill. To hone your craft, you need to practice, practice, practice.
Apply the techniques you learn by writing copy for emails, landing pages, websites, blog posts, and so much more.
Practice everything.
The more you do, the more you improve.
Copywriting is the single most important skill you’ll ever learn as a business owner. Once you excel at it, you’ll never have to worry about marketing yourself ever again.
Final thoughts
As writers, the fear of promoting ourselves is a universal one. But we can master this fear and use it to our advantage.
It all starts with our mind. We have cultivated limiting beliefs that prevent us from achieving our goals.
The way forward is to discard these limiting beliefs and adopt new ones.
Embrace your identity as a writer and never be afraid to introduce yourself as such with dignity and pride.
Remember that you’re always improving. So don’t be ashamed of your skill level. Everyone sucks at some point. That shouldn’t stop you from promoting yourself.
Finally, learn copywriting to become more skilled at marketing and self-promotion.
I guess now will be the perfect time to shamelessly promote my paranormal romance, Her Witch, Her Demon.
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