One of the FIRST things you need to do, when becoming an author, is start up a monthly newsletter. It's a crucial part of your marketing plan, and one of the easiest ways to foster a relationship with your readers. Assuming, of course, you do your newsletter correctly. Want to subscribe to mine? Click here.

Here are five ways to make your newsletter AMAZING.

1. Make it Personal. Don't just fill your newsletter with sales links and book teasers. No one wants to get a giant advertisement once a month. Tell them about your month, about something interesting that's going on in your life, or what's on the calendar. Include pictures of your writing space, your pets, or from a recent trip. Let them get to know YOU.

2. Give away something. I include a giveaway in every single newsletter. Once my subscribers learned that, it gave them an additional reason to click on my newsletter when it popped up in their inbox. Your monthly giveaway doesn't have to be huge. It can be a swag pack, or an ebook or audiobook of yours.

3. Make it mobile-friendly. On average, over half of my subscribers open my newsletter on a mobile device. If your newsletter isn't mobile-friendly, there’s NO WAY that they are going to read it. They may open it, but then they're going to exit out of that baby and move on to the next thing in their inbox. Test out your newsletter on a phone, and see how it looks. One of the things I really like about MailerLite is that it allows me to easily preview my newsletter on a mobile device, at any point during the editing.

4. Cross Promote. Do you see that preview image above? Notice how I included a book cover of one of Carly Phillip's novels? That was part of a newsletter swap that I did with her. She gave away that ebook (Going Down Easy) to all of my newsletter subscribers, and I returned the favor to all of her newsletter subscribers. It was a win-win for both of us, because it exposed our writing to new audiences. PLUS, our subscribers loved it! And that's always the focus - to keep your subscribers happy.

5. Don't Abuse Your Subscribers. Treat your subscribers with respect. Always include an unsubscribe link and don’t over-email them (2-4 times a month is the most I would send). Be consistent and respect the access that a reader has given you.

Do you need a newsletter provider? I use and LOVE MailerLite. Use this link to sign up and get a $20 credit!

If you want more information on emailing your readers and growing your list, I have two free video classes - a beginner and an advanced one. I hope they help!