January is a natural time to pause and think about how we want to be seen as writers - not just what we want to write, but how we want our work to reach readers. For many writers, marketing can feel overwhelming, confusing, or even slightly uncomfortable. There are so many platforms, so many opinions, and so much noise. This year, we want to do something simpler, steadier, and far more supportive.
Rather than trying to be everywhere at once, The Book Whisperers will be focusing on one marketing platform or opportunity each month throughout our 2026 newsletters. The aim is not to chase trends, but to build understanding, confidence, and consistency over time.
Marketing works best when it grows alongside your writing, not when it’s bolted on at the last minute. By exploring one platform at a time, we can slow the process down and look at what actually helps writers - how to use each space well, what kind of content works there, and how to show up in ways that feel authentic rather than forced.
We’ll begin in February with Substack, exploring how regular writing can help you build an audience and, if you choose, an income stream. Over the course of the year, we’ll also be looking at platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and BookTok, LinkedIn, BlueSky, podcasts, and other ways of sharing your work and your voice. Each month will include practical advice, ideas for getting started, accounts to follow, and suggestions for how writers can use these spaces without burning out.
One of the most important things we want to emphasise is that marketing doesn’t have to be a solitary activity. Growth happens faster — and feels far less daunting — when it’s shared. Throughout the year, we’ll be encouraging our Author and Writer Members to support one another by following each other’s work, sharing posts, celebrating launches, and engaging genuinely with what others are creating. Cross-promotion isn’t about numbers; it’s about visibility, encouragement, and collective momentum.
To support this, we host our Big Voices Author Members marketing meeting on the second Wednesday of each month, and our Writers Surgery for Author & Writers Members on the last Wednesday of the month, both held via Zoom - spaces designed for connection, collaboration, and shared growth.
If you’re starting this year with a small audience, you’re not behind. Every reader begins with one person choosing to pay attention. Marketing is simply the practice of making it easier for the right people to find you, slowly and consistently, over time.
January isn’t about mastering every platform or building an audience overnight. It’s about laying foundations - choosing intention over urgency, connection over performance, and community over competition. As the year unfolds, we’ll be learning, experimenting, and growing together.
You don’t need to do everything. You don’t need to do it alone. And you don’t need to rush. One platform at a time, one step at a time, we’ll build something meaningful - together.