Start with the reader, not the platform
Answer these three before you post anything.
Who finishes this book at 2am?
Age, taste, the last five books they loved. Be uncomfortably specific.
What are its three comparable titles?
Recent, mid-list, same shelf. Comps are how readers place you.
What is the one line?
The premise a stranger can repeat to a friend without your help.
Where to spend the time
You do not need all of these. You need one, plus a newsletter.
TikTok / BookTok
Best for: Upmarket & genre fiction, strong hooks
Highest discovery ceiling, highest effort. Video, face optional, consistency essential.
Post: 60-second premise hooks, tropes-as-a-list, 'the scene that broke me' reads.
Instagram / Bookstagram
Best for: Anything visual — covers, aesthetics, worldbuilding
Slower burn, warmer community. Carousels outperform single images.
Post: Mood boards, character art, annotated pages, cover reveals.
Substack / newsletter
Best for: Every writer, eventually
The only audience you own. Nothing can deplatform a mailing list.
Post: Monthly progress letter, one free short piece a quarter, launch announcements.
Threads / Bluesky
Best for: Literary fiction, nonfiction, writers' community
Low reach per post, high peer connection. Good for finding blurbs and beta readers.
Post: Craft observations, process notes, generous replies to other writers.
YouTube
Best for: Nonfiction, worldbuilding-heavy fantasy
Slowest to start, longest-lived. One good video works for years.
Post: Worldbuilding deep dives, 'how I wrote' breakdowns, research rabbit holes.
What to post
Six shapes. Rotate them; never invent a seventh under pressure.
The hook
One line of premise, nothing else. Test which sentence makes people ask a question.
The process
A photo of the mess. Word counts, index cards, the crossed-out page.
The artefact
A map, a character portrait, a palette. Show the world, not the pitch.
The excerpt
150 words that end mid-tension. Never the opening paragraph.
The confession
The chapter that beat you. Writers buy from writers they recognise.
The ask
Rare and direct. Preorder, review, share. Earn it with the other five first.
A launch that doesn't consume you
Twelve weeks, three hours a week.