Here's how to start dressing like the writer you want to be.

And, why every writer needs good branding.

I heard a bit of wisdom once that stuck with me — don’t ask me where I heard it, please! It’s a pretty popular idea, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve heard it before, too.

You need to dress like the title you want.

Now, it’s easy to think this is all about clothing, but I promise you it isn’t. It’s about how you present yourself and your work to the world. It’s about branding.

It’s about the way you dress, the way you speak, the way you teach, the way you create, what you call yourself, and the way you package yourself and your brand.

As a writer, it’s hard enough to think about ourselves as writers/authors, let alone business owners. Being a writer is the end goal — the far-away goal. But what if you could put out writer energy from the start? Dressing like a writer is the first step!

This is where writer branding comes in.

Branding yourself as a writer is a mindset. It’s the decision you make to say that you are, right now, in this moment, whatever type of writer you want to be (romance author, lifestyle blogger, coach, etc). And everything you’re going to do from this point forward will prove that statement true.

This first step into your new wardrobe is all about defining your niche.

It’s pretty obvious that defining your niche is important. You know you want to be a writer, but what KIND of writer do you want to be? It’s important that you start your branding journey by really asking yourself that question.

Here are some tips for defining your niche:

• When defining your niche, start large and narrow in. Define your overall niche. This will be something like ‘romance writer’ or ‘blogger’. That’s your umbrella niche. It’s too big and all-encompassing to build a brand around, but it’s a start. You need to find the niche INSIDE of your niche.

• Next, think about the types of content you want to make within your larger niche. For instance, if you're a romance writer, do you write contemporary romance? Historical romance? Paranormal romance?
  
  If you’re a lifestyle blogger, do you focus on city life? Faith? Creativity?
  
  There are a million and one different categories in every umbrella niche. Which do you fit into most?

• Once you’ve defined the type of content you write, dig a little deeper. If you like to write contemporary romance, what’s a setting or troupe that comes through most or all of your stories? Do you like setting your novels in big cities? Do you prefer creating characters in the 19–23 age range?
  
  If you’re a lifestyle blogger who focuses on creativity, what’s your overall goal for your readers? Is it to live a more creative life? Or to find just a moment of creativity every day? Are you talking about creativity for seniors, young adults, kids, or maybe all of the above?

• Now put that all together! Your niche should look something like this: I am a contemporary romance writer who creates stories set in New York City.
  
  OR I am a creative lifestyle blogger who helps readers find a moment of creativity every day in their busy lives.

You’ve defined your niche, now what?

It’s time to research your niche!

Want to know a secret? This is my FAVORITE part of any project. I LOVE researching, and I especially love researching writer niches. Why? Because I get to read and dive deep into what makes other writers in my niche successful.

When I’m creating a writer branding kit, I start by defining the niche and then I look for 2–4 successful authors within that niche.

Let’s look at one of our example niches one more time: I am a contemporary romance writer who creates stories set in New York City.

Start with a list of needs that make up the type of author you want to be. Jot down the overarching niche, and two things that define your particular niche.

I need to find authors who:

• Are contemporary romance writers.

• Favor location-specific settings.

• Favor city characters.

Once I have my list of what I’m looking for, it’s time to take it to Google and Amazon to look for authors who fit my list of needs.

If you're looking for blogs, brands, or coaches that fit your list, you’ll be using Google to find your competitors. However - finding popular books on your topic is a great way to find competitors too.

Look for books on the bestsellers list that best match your niche.

Odds are you already know of writers who fit your niche because you’re an avid reader in this niche yourself. That’s great! You’re one step ahead of the game.

If you’re not sure of successful books and authors in your niche, start by looking on the Kindle Best Sellers List. Here, you can research your larger, overarching niche (like contemporary romance) and get a good idea of who is doing well in your field.

For instance, if I’m looking for a contemporary romance with a city theme, I might scan through the titles and covers on the ‘contemporary romance’ bestsellers list to see if any look like they would have an urban setting.

Once you find a book that fits in with your niche, look at the author’s other books. You want to choose someone with a larger repertoire, so you can really see what their niche is. (If you’re researching for a blog/coaching business/brand, they don’t necessarily need to have a bunch of books out. One well-selling book is enough.)

Do this again until you have 2–4 authors who you know are in your niche and track down where they are on the internet. Do they have a website? An Instagram? A Facebook page? Take note!

Here’s your homework:

By this point, you should have defined your niche and found 2 to 4 competitors who are successful within said niche.

This is such a great start!

Here’s what you should do next:

• Track down your 3–4 competitors. And/or their Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. You’re trying to find where these writers have established a presence.

• Look at the colors, fonts, and logos. Do you notice any similarities between them? Start making a list.

• Make note of design elements that you’re drawn to on the author’s website (or social media). Hint: Start thinking about the way the colors on their platform interact with the colors on their book covers.

When you’re done this, come share your findings in this Facebook Group that offers branding help specifically for writers.