Advice from a Writing Cowboy

If you’re an accomplished author, folks might ask you to speak to groups every now and then. I’ve heard plenty of such talks, but none like a recent one from Michael Johnson.

Bio

A true cowboy, Michael Johnson lives on a Texas horse farm. Unlike many cowboys, he earned a doctorate at East Texas State University. He’s authored several award-winning books, has performed hundreds of stage shows, writes a nationally syndicated magazine column, and hosts a weekly radio broadcast.

How to Give a Talk

I didn’t know him before listening to his talk. I just showed up and took a seat among the dozen attendees. While I chatted with others, waiting for the talk to begin, a guy walked up and waited for a gap in the conversation. He introduced himself as Michael Johnson and shook my hand.

Later, upon starting his talk, Mr. Johnson expressed how happy he was to be there, and nodded to each of us in turn and said our first names. He’d just met a dozen people who’d entered a room in haphazard order and sat where they pleased, and he’d memorized all our names in seated order. Wow.

Even if he’d said nothing of consequence after that, I still would have listened with complete attention. He’d memorized my name, and the names of everyone there. By contrast, I often forget a single person’s name a few seconds after an introduction. If I could learn to do what he did, I could command attention too.

How to Sell Books

Mr. Johnson went on to provide valuable information. He knew a group of writers might wish to know how to sell more books, and that’s what he talked about.

He used anecdotes from his life to illustrate his points. With humor to lighten things up, he offered advice from hard-earned experience. Mr. Johnson also recommended the book 1001 Ways to Market Your Books, by John Kremer. I haven’t read it, but am considering it.

Two of Mr. Johnson’s major points impressed me most of all.

1. Write what you want to write. Steer clear of the temptation to follow trends or copy favorite authors.
2. You’ll sell more books by making personal connections with potential readers. It’s not your book they’re buying—it’s you.

The Effect on Me

That second bit of advice ejected me way out of my comfort zone. I consider myself a writer, not a salesman. I lack a sales personality and the sales skills.

Still, I guess I’m not too old a dog to learn a new trick. Personal connections. Okay, I can give them a try.

Mr. Johnson signed a copy of his book, The Trials of Joe Ben Black—Confessions of a Rope Horse, for me. From what I gather about it so far, humans can learn a fair bit about positive thinking from horses. Talk about a personal connection!

Just think—all this time I’ve been working to sell my books, and I should’ve been working to sell—

Poseidon’s Scribe