Marketing vs. Promotion: What Wrestling Teaches Authors About Selling Books
Writers of all stripes often hit the same stumbling block: They mistake marketing for promotion.
They’ll labor over cover design, fiddle with blurbs, or chase after genre tropes without ever asking one critical question …
How do I get people excited enough to buy my book?
The visual equivalent of most authors’ promotional efforts
The truth you may not want to hear is, marketing is only half the picture. Yes, knowing your audience and packaging your work for them is important. But once the book is out in the world, you have to do what most writers dread.
You must promote it.
“But how?” you might ask. “I’m an introverted wallflower who never goes outside. Can you give me an effective example to follow?”
As luck would have it, yes I can. Because there’s no better template for how to do effective promos than professional wrestling.
Trust me; this will all make sense.
Think of marketing as ring psychology. It’s the lighting, the fight choreography, and the announcers’ commentary; everything that creates the context for your story. But the analogies don’t stop there.
Cover design is the costume
your blurb is the pre-fight hype video
Amazon or your online storefront are the venue.
If you botch these fundamentals, the audience doesn’t stick around to see the match. But even with a perfect setup, people won’t buy tickets just to see a ring. They show up for the performers.
That means you’ve got to work the crowd.
Promotion is what happens once the bell rings. It’s how you step between the ropes and get the crowd chanting your name. This is where writers need to take lessons from professional wrestlers, the masters of hype.
Every wrestler’s job is to make the audience care about the fight. They do this by cutting promos, short speeches designed to:
Tell the crowd who they are
tell them why they matter
stoke anticipation for the next match.
Authors need to do the same. Your book isn’t just a pdf on Kindle, it’s an event. Every time you open your mouth, i.e., take to your keyboard, about your work, you’re cutting a promo.
Here’s how it’s done …
Find Your Gimmick
Every wrestler has a persona. Hulk Hogan, eternal memory, was the all-American strongman. Stone Cold was the blue collar rebel. The Undertaker was an … undead cowboy.
Anyway, your author persona shouldn’t be fake, but it has to be bigger than life. Readers need a handle on who you are.
Are you the Pulp Revivalist? The Grand Inquisitor of Fantasy? Whatever your persona; pick it, own it, and work it.
“But shouldn’t I be professional?”
Yes, you should. And that means understanding that “professional” in the entertainment industry doesn’t mean '“boring.” Because pro wrestlers are some of the most professional performers around.
Writers too often post “Here’s my book” and call it a day. That’s like a wrestler walking out, shrugging, and leaving.
You need to sell. Amd you do it with solid promotion.
Perfect Your Promo
A good promo answers three questions:
Who am I?
What’s coming?
Why should you care?
Instead of just stating:
“My fantasy novel is out today. Link below.”
Try:
“You’ve read Tom Clancy. You’ve watched Code Geass. But you’ve never seen what happens when the two collide in a storm of intrigue and iron. That storm has a name: CY40. Hit the link and join the fight!”
Work the Audience
Wrestlers don’t just talk at the crowd; they listen. If the fans boo, they pivot. If they cheer, they double down. In the same way, writers promoting books need to turn on a dime.
Did your followers love the character art you shared? Post more.
Did they ignore your wall of text? Keep it shorter and punchier next time.
Are they memeing one of your lines? Embrace it.
Promotion is a two-way street. Build anticipation by engaging instead of broadcasting.
Don’t Be Afraid of Heat
Some wrestlers make their careers as heels, the bad guys who stir the crowd’s fury. Authors can take a page here, too. It’s not the end of the world if your persona ticks off certain groups. Heat can be harnessed to drive attention. Just make sure you’re not alienating your core readers and you don’t get reliant on picking random fights.
“But haven’t you cautioned writers against engaging in eDrama?”
Yes, I have. And not one iota of that advice has changed. Because there’s a world of difference between the promotional jiu-jitsu of harnessing and directing organic controversy to your benefit vs throwing bricks through people’s windows.
Related: The eDrama Egg Timer
Don’t worry; if you go out there and do your thing with passion, integrity, and success, controversy will find you. The internet is chock full of weirdos just waiting for an excuse to get offended, and the crab basket mentality is real. The key is knowing how to use heat when it comes your way; not going around setting fires.
Always Sell the Next Show
The one deadly sin in wrestling is leaving the ring without making fans hungry for what’s next.
Same goes for writers. Every post should point readers toward the next short, the next sequel; the next series.
Don’t ever let the hype die after launch day. Keep feeding the crowd.
Promotion Is the Performance
At the end of the day, marketing builds the stage. Promotion puts you on it.
Writers can’t afford to be shrinking violets. Because readers don’t just buy books; they buy into the author’s story behind the book.
That’s why you always need two stories.
Professional wrestling has thrived for decades because it understands a truth writers need to relearn: The match matters, but the promo sells the ticket.
If you want readers to care about your book, stop hiding. Step up to the mic and give them a reason to chant your name.
Brian Niemeier is a best-selling novelist, editor, and Dragon Award winner with over a decade in newpub. For direct, in-person writing and editing insights, join his Patreon.