“So… will you be doing a book tour?”

Aside from being confused for Rupert Grint (AKA Ron Weasley), this is the number one question I get asked nowadays.

And I always feel like a loser for how I answer it.

After the book launch, will I tour the country, speaking to audiences?

Nah.

I usually tell people, “That's not how it works anymore.”

Of course, plenty of authors still do book tours and are quite successful doing them. But fortunately, with the Internet, it's not the only choice we have anymore. And with a newborn and day job, I'm grateful.

An online book tour? Why not?

So can you still spread the word about a book without leaving your home? Let's figure it out together.

I'd like to do an online book tour with you, if you're up for it. If you've got a blog, website, podcast, YouTube channel, or some online platform, I'd love to connect with you to share the message of my new book, Wrecked.

If you're interested, here's what you need to do:

1. Email me at jeff@goinswriter.com. In the subject line, include “Wrecked Book Tour.” In the body, share why I should visit your blog/website and what you want to do (e.g. giveaway, contest, Q&A, etc.). We can't choose everyone, so the best ideas will win. Cutoff date for submissions will be Aug. 9.
2. Include a few dates that work for your schedule. My assistant Jamie will help schedule these, and we'll get back to you about setting up a time to chat. The number of responses will determine how many we do and for how long.
3. Publish the post, interview, or whatever. Once it goes live, I'll link to your post from a special “Online Book Tour” page on my blog (we'll update this as we go).

That's it! You don't need a big platform to be eligible. More than anything, I'm looking for fun ideas to get the word out about the book without having to leave my family.

First stops on the tour

This week, I've already started doing this. Here are a few places I've stopped to share about Wrecked already (these are guest posts and special appearances on blogs, websites, and online communities):

• The Day My Story Stopped Being About Me [Prodigal Magazine]
• The Surprising Secret to Satisfaction [Ken Davis]
• When You Realize You're Living in a Bubble [Michael Hyatt]
• The Harsh Truth About Finding Your Calling [Seth Barnes]
• The Commitment Conundrum [Catalyst]
• Wrecked [The Handwritten]
• What Everyone Needs to Know About Wrecked [RevTrev]
• Don't Wreck the Bubble [Searching for Grace]
• Stay or Go? [Seth Caddell]
• Finding Purpose When You're Wrecked [Erica McNeal]
• Two Words to Live By [Creative Juicer]
• When You Realize You're Not the Hero of Your Own Story [Ian Cron]
• When Your World Comes Crashing Down [Grit and Glory]
• Committing After the Adventure [RELEVANT Magazine]

You can also read early reviews of the book here. I'd love to hear what ideas you have for the online book tour.

What do you think about book tours? Are they still relevant? Share in the comments.

*Photo credit: nSeika (Creative Commons)