As a new author it is hard to promote your novel, particularly when it is being published by a small press publisher starting a new imprint. Having the backing of a large publishing house helps but it is hardly a guarantee. I’m not an overly religious person but the phrase ‘God favors the prepared’ comes to mind. Yet how does one become ‘prepared’? Personally I think word of mouth is the best way to build an audience for a new author but how do you go about doing that?

Online forums are a good place to start. Some forums are specialized and some are more general but even in the general forums there is usually a home for Science Fiction. Getting those readers interested in your novel is challenging. Many of these forums have been around for a long time and have ‘been there, done that’. It is hard to attract their attention in a positive way, such that they become interested in you and your novel rather than dismissing you as a spammer.

The best way is to actively participate in these forums. I’ve been a member of Baen’s Bar for years now but most of the other forums I’m active on are new to me. Even then I’m not a prolific poster. I don’t post just for the heck of it. Occasionally I’ll post a humorous response but for the most part I only post when I have something to say.

I’ve also come to admire what the people running these forums have been able to accomplish. I’m amazed at how much I’ve learned in the few months since I’ve joined these forums and I’m eager to learn more. I’m also eager to share that knowledge with other people; I think one of the advantages of belonging to multiple forums is having the chance to share what I’ve learned in one forum with people in other forums.

Still, I wanted to be able to contribute more, to give something back. I could donate to the costs of running these forums but anyone can do that and it doesn’t have an immediate impact. Then one day Opportunity knocked.

My publisher had previously submitted the Cover for my novel to an online contest called The Covey Awards. The cover was to be featured in August 2007 and I eagerly monitored the site, waiting patiently for the post. Unfortunately it never materialized. The site owner(s) got too busy and had to 404 the site.

A few days after I discovered the site was 404′d, I went to blogger and re-registered the site, asking if it should be kept alive. I also posted that question in the various forums that I belong to. The response was hardly overwhelming (16 votes out of 56 visits) but the positive response was clear. 100% of the people who voted wanted to keep The Covey Awards alive. And so they live on.

I’ve started a new site (primarily so I could get the matching email) called The NEW Covey Awards.

The NEW Covey Awards

The purpose of the site is to award prizes to the best Covers each month. In this case, the best is defined as the ‘Most Eye-Catching Cover’, the kind of cover that would make you stop and read the blurb on the back or first chapter. We’ve (yes we - I have help, thank goodness) also decided to create an award for the ‘Most Relevant Cover’, the cover that most closely matches the back cover blurb.

I think this is a great forum for new authors to showcase their novel and it provides exposure for the often unrecognized cover artists.

Please visit the site monthly and vote for your favorite cover. Voting opens the last week of each month. Submissions are also welcome.

For more information email TheNEWCoveyAwards@gmail.com.