You've just written what you feel is a best seller novel and your publisher agrees. The hard work is over, right? WRONG.

You can safely say that the first part of your job is over and now comes the part of the job that many writers and authors dread. Promotion of the book. The reason so many authors hate this side of the business is because it is virtually unknown territory for a writer. And, as technology grows, the ideas and possibilities for promoting a product become boundless. Not to mention that writers need not be technically saavy in order to draft a manuscript. Typically, all that is required is a computer and Microsoft Word or some other well-known word processing software.

Also, publishers tend to be very frugal when promoting a first time published author. The reason being is that they haven't proved themselves to be a lucrative commodity. Some authors and writers write one book and that is the end of their novel writing career. The bottom line is that the publisher is reluctant to spend money to promote a person's book because there isn't a guarantee that they will recoup their money in the project.

So, it is left to the author to do alot of legwork and promotion of their own until they become much more established.

Here are some worthwhile promotions to kick start interest in your book:

Start a Blog

Most blogs are free to users and they are absolutely the hottest form of self-expression today. The possibilities are endless in reaching people and gaining exposure. The more you blog about your book, what it is about, who the target audience is, the more attention you are likely to recieve. You can even invite guest bloggers which will draw their regular readers as well as your own.

Syndicate your Blog

There are countless syndicates such as Feedblitz, RSS, Google, My Yahoo, Newsgator, My MSN, My Bloglines and more. This allows your readers to sign up and recieve the latest postings from your blog automatically. This also multiplies your readership tenfold.

Submit your Blog to Search Engines

Try googling various search engines and submit to as many as you can. There are quite a few that offer free submission which is a bonus! It's easy and helps your blog to stand out from the rest when someone is searching for the same tag criteria.

Podcasting

Do a search for podcasters looking for guests to interview regarding their books. It is essentially a radio show for the internet! Again, the audience is enormous and will most definitely help your marketing efforts.

Book Trailer

This is the equivalent of a movie trailer. These are short films that you can create on your computer to advertise a teaser for your book. If you don't have the program to do this, simply go onto websites such as You Tube, Google, Yahoo etc. and you will be able to find someone to do this for you. Once your trailer has been posted, you can imbed the film on your blog or website and even email it to all your friends, family and others that may be interested.

By spending some time completing these tasks, your book will have more exposure than most and help to establish your credibility as a lucrative investment to your publisher.

Good Luck!