Cheryl McNeil (pen name, Cheryl D. Bannerman, her birth name) is CEO of a small virtual training company based out of Central New Jersey. She works out of her home office and creates classroom training materials, e-Learning modules, job aides and much more for corporate employees and their clients. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and a Masters in Project Management. She is also the (divorced) single mother of a beautiful eleven year old girl.
In her spare time she loves to read murder mysteries, watch movies, try new restaurants and cuisines, shop with her daughter, and in the summer, walk the boardwalk and take in the sun on the beach. Although her works are fiction, she has incorporated many of her life’s experiences into her stories.
Her latest book is Black Child to Black Woman.
You can find Cheryl at www.bannermanbooks.com.
Welcome to Book Marketing Buzz, Cheryl. Can we begin by having you tell us a little about your book?
Black Child to Black Woman: A Journey of Tremendous Proportions is about the story of a girl name Tara Walker who is writing in her journal to her audience, which is the reader. She documents her experiences, her family life, her triumphs, as well as her interpretation of life and the world as she saw it.
Although she came from a loving home with both parents, she struggled to come to grips with siblings addicted to drugs, molestation, attempted rape, broken hearts, and so much more.
This books’ diary experiences will make you laugh, cry, scream, sigh, and gasp aloud, as Tara struggles to keep her head above water and fight through the tribulations of her life, while continuing to be successful in her career, and continuing to survive.
What is the first thing you did to promote your book once your publisher accepted your manuscript?
Nothing. I actually did not say a word until to anyone until I was published and holding a copy in my hands. Then I created a web site and Facebook page and emailed my friends and family.
If you had to pick just one book marketing tool that you’ve used to promote your book, which would you say has been the most effective?
I would have to wait a bit longer to answer that question to compare them all. Since the October Virtual Book Tour just started and I will not be starting the Book Signing tour until November.
Do you do more promoting online or offline and which do you prefer?
Again, online is how I am starting out and then offline promotions beginning in November. I think the larger audience is online in this day and time; especially with everyone reading e-books and purchasing Kindles and other similar products. They say Amazon accounts for over 30% of book sales. That’s amazing to me. I just love to wander around and spend hours in the book store. My daughter does too!
Do you use social networks such as Twitter and Facebook to promote your books and have you had any success with it?
Yes, I have a Facebook page for the book. You can find me under Cheryl Bannerman. I’ve had tremendous support from long time friends and families, but not a huge increase in sales. I wanted the page to allow everyone to see me on a more down-to-earth and personal level. Go ahead…ask me anything! Post a message on my wall! J
Do you own a blog and how often do you update it? Did you set up your blog solely to promote your book and what is its effectiveness?
No, I don’t. That’s why I hired Pump Up Your Book Promotions! These blog tours really get your name out there.
Do you recommend authors getting publicists to help them promote their books? Do you have one?
Yes, I do. The world of readers is vast and you have to reach them somehow. Publicists are very good at reaching the right audience for your specific genre and book content. I actually have two because they are so specialized.
If an author prefers to do it alone rather than hire a publicist, where should they start?
Online. Do what Pump Up Your Book Promotions is doing for me, but of course it would probably be on a smaller scale. But you have to email everyone you know, purchase mailing lists if you have to, start a blog, web site, myspace page, whatever you have to. You can even submit your book for reviews on tons of free sites. The important thing is to set aside a fixed amount of time each day to promote yourself.
Thank you for coming, Cheryl! We wish you much success!
Thank you so much for having me.
Related posts:
Posted in 
Tags: 
