Using Humour to Promote Books
Humour or humor? This isn't a typo; only the US spells it without the 'u'
Everyone likes to laugh. Laughter has been described as the world's best tonic so it makes sense to use it in your book promotions. Probably the best way to describe that is by example. Here are promotions I've used:
Remember algebra at school?
Writing a murder mystery? This cartoon is just itching to be used by an author who has found an unusual way to kill a murder victim.
If you find this guide useful...
Can you help me out?
If you find these pages useful you can return the favour by downloading a FREE ebook from Amazon - even if you don't read it, it will help our rankings! I think you'll probably like it though.
It's the first book of a series of 9 books (so far) which tell the story of how life on Earth was saved from a cataclysmic extinction when a rogue planetoid collides with Earth in 7141. This first book deals with how humanity was made immortal, giving us the incentive to do something about an event so far in the future.
Take a touch of humour, add some genetic science and nanotechnology. Steep with conspiracy and stir in murder and despair. Season with romance between three people in a secret location. Garnish with morality.
The result is 'Immortality Gene', the first in a novel series by John and Shelia Chapman. The ebook of book 1 is FREE and available at multiple retailers
Get it from your favourite store
Kindle readers - get it at Smashwords because Amazon wants to charge you 99¢
A slightly modified picture from the Sistine Chapel
Could an editor be described as a book surgeon?
Or maybe a free online interactive adventure story?
Back in 1982 early text only adventure games were being written for home computers. One such game was 'Castle of Riddles' written by Peter Killworth and published by Acornsoft. Now it's been re-written and greatly expanded with added images and sound. Play it on your computer, tablet or even a phone.
Check it out at https://jaydax.co.uk/corr
If you are writing a series you may not know how it ends yet.
The cartoon world can be a source of inspiration This one id from the New Yorker.
Want a short story instead?
I've written a number of short time travel stories. Each is 99p/99¢ and great for taking a break from writing.
Check them out at http://iwadasn.info
Grammar Nazis are always good to poke fun at but it's best to give them no excuse. This cartoon does actually contain a hieroglyph grammar mistake. You see the animals in it should all face the same way. That's the direction the hieroglyphs are read in.
I couldn't resist this apparently toothless dog picture. I added dog false teeth in a glass of water and used it to invite people to read a book.
Money advice?
If I could give my younger self advice it would be to make use of the power of exponential investing. Start small but regular. As little as £1.00. Wealthify today would be a good way to do this.
Perhaps not so relevant today since Twitter/X, Facebook and Goodreads are seldom too busy for their servers but there was a time when 'over capacity' messages were common .
Again the cartoon world can be a source of inspiration?
Want faster Internet?
I live out in the country, half a mile from the nearest road and as a result my telephone line is long. There isn't a cell phone tower near either. As a result the fastest broadband I could get had an 18 Mb download speed and a 2 Mb upload speed on a good day. That might be enough for some but it's NOT enough for a family of three heavy Internet users.
When Starlink offered free equipment and a 30 day free trial I thought it was worth checking them out since their blurb indicated I could get at least ten times my 18 Mb download speed.
THEIR BLURB WAS WRONG!
I didn't get ten times the speed I got twenty times the speed - 360Mb download and 24Mb upload.
Check Starlink out if you want FAST Internet and live far from a fibreoptic Internet connection anywhere in the world.
When you write a series featuring genetic engineers it's hard not to take advantage of this subtle twist of the traditional homework excuse .
…and here's another example.
What do you put in your dishwasher?
Introducing the Killer Whale of Dishwasher tabs. We tested 2000 Dishwasher tablets from across Europe to find the best eco formula.
- A brilliant clean for your dishes & the fishes
- Proven to clean better than any other eco tab
- Spotless mugs, glasses, cutlery with no residue
- Plastic-Free and Phosphate-Free
- 100% satisfaction or double your money back*
Give it a try and let us know what you think!
Ocean Saver
If you are not quite as fortunate as this example then that's a good excuse to wind down with a book.
Even graffiti can be a source of inspiration.
MS Word isn't bad at checking grammar but ProWritingAid is better.
It's the grammar check we use. We've tried several and found it the best and most cost effective while not overtaxing our computers.
Check them out at ProWritingAid.com
When you start writing a series you may not know how it ends.
This cartoon fits the ebook/paper book debate perfectly.
Octopus Energy
Which? Recommended Energy Provider award yet again. Check it out and get £50 credit when you switc. Not only did I get the £50 when I switched but I found them £313 cheaper than a previous provider NPower who were a joke!
Check them out Octopus
If you cant find 'funny' then you can always take advantage of 'cute'.
Did you know about the collective noun for kittens?
Want a good reusable water/coffee bottle? I use a Contigo, Stainless Steel Thermal mug, vacuum flask, leakproof tumbler, 470ml. It's good for coffee or water. Has a BPA free Easy-Clean Lid.
https://amzn.to/4cGmL5o
A free book 1 of a series will often leave readers hanging as an incentive for people to buy the second book. That's a #BOGOF offer - Buy One Get One Free. There's an even better offer if things get slow, a #PAPMAGT offer - Pay A Penny More And Get Three
The art of writing a good story is to add an unexpected twist to the tale (better not make that 'tail' missionary.)
A horrible read?
If you live in the UK here's a book I recommend. It's non-fiction and a horrible read. It's the story of the UK Covid-19 pandemic written by a doctor, Rachael Clarke, and tells the tale of how the pandemic was mis-managed. It's the sort of book that by the time you get to chapter three, you feel a need to go and wash your hands. £0.99 Breath Taking https://amzn.to/3IB6f9c
This one possibly needs a little work to make the printer 'low ink' message clearer.
The world of puns is there to be taken advantage of.
Want some short time travel stories?
I wrote 4 short time travel stories deliberately breaking every author 'rule' I could think of yet still producing a readable experience. Years later I read about Ray Kurzweil's singularity and realised my 'timebots' were remarkably similar to his concept. You can get this short book for $0.99 via https://books2read.com/tat
Not know about Ray Kurzweil? Try https://www.wired.com/story/big-interview-ray-kurzweil/ or read his 2005 book 'The Singularity is Near' https://amzn.to/46lvfwl
If the world (and the dog) are in a mess… then offer a fix.
Book promotion, even of free ebooks, can be difficult but so far I have not resorted to this yet.
Want some other good time travel stories?
Try The Clay Lion (The Clay Lion Series Book 1) by Amalie Jahn
https://amzn.to/4fGFiQW
My review https://amzn.to/3WQlfbp
This one is inspired by a ginger tom cat we had who made a practice of going swimming. His first attempt was over the fence into a neighbour's algae covered pond.
Here's a second version. If something works - use it again.
Want a true story instead?
The Good Virus by Tom Ireland.
Beautifully written as a page turner whether you are of a scientific background or not. And what an interesting and arresting story. A new but old class of life hidden in plain sight and with oh so much potential for mankind. https://amzn.to/3SWIYnJ
How about some fiction likely to be a true story soon?
2024 was the world's warmest year on record https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1dpnxnvv2go Before you get complacent read 'The Ministry for the Future' by Kim Stanley Robinson https://amzn.to/3D7p4Bk to see what it may be like soon.
I found the picture online and added all the text.
This was inspired by finding an ebook I had given away free for five days at Kindle Select on a pirate website. I removed the book from Select and made it perma-free.
Want a short story instead?
Back in 2009 I wrote a blog post about what I would do if, like Bruce in Bruce Almighty, I were God. I updated it recently. If I were 'Jaydax Almighty' I would... https://jaydax.blogspot.com/2009/09/if-i-were-jaydax-almighty-i-would.html
What would you change?
And if you haven't seen it
Our first book took three years to write and involved a great deal of research. The problem of writing a book based on predicting developments in current technology is that real technology rapidly catches up with you … technology.html
I put the glass of brandy in one of the old lady's hand. She was holding a pipe too. The background was erased and speech bubbles added.
A book you are not likely to come across unless someone tells you about it.
Ever heard of Doctor Vernon Coleman? He's one of those people like David Icke and Dr. Mercola who the media love to hate and as a result their work gets hidden. But Vernon Coleman writes fiction as well as medical news and his fiction is good. Check out 'A true story that hasn't happened yet' - Vernon Coleman https://amzn.to/46glj92 Kindle £2.99 KU Paperback £7.99 Hardback £9.99
This one was inspired by the Hatchette/Amazon argument which meant that I couldn't buy an ebook copy of 'Under the Dome' I could only get my hands on a hardback copy of the book and it was heavy! It made me look for other big books and I found this image. Imagine trying to read that on your knees in bed. That's one of the reasons I prefer ebooks
Want a copy of 'Under the Dome'?
I suggest you get the ebook because the 886 page paper book is so heavy it will make your wrists ache
Check it out at Amazon
