Social media promises writers a way to reach a large number of potential readers. The problem is, the possibilities are rather limited. X is a dumpster fire of partisan politics. Bluesky will probably follow. I don’t know anyone who gets many sales through Instagram. Tiktok works only for extroverts and the app’s future in the U.S. is uncertain.

That leaves Facebook, the world’s largest social networking site with an estimated three billion monthly users. That’s a huge audience, and one that skews older, the very demographic that tends to read more.

Our personal page is not the best place to push our writing. Our friends aren’t our customers! Instead, start a Facebook author page solely devoted to your work. From your existing account, click on the menu button on the upper right. Under “create”, click “page”. You’ll then go through a few steps similar to making your personal page. It only takes a few minutes. Create a banner featuring your books, a profile photo of yourself, and links to your website.

But how do you get people to join? List the page wherever your books are listed such as your Amazon author page, website, sig line, etc. Invite your friends, mention it in your newsletter, and in any Facebook groups that allow you to do so. It will start slow but will grow with time.

If you want to run Meta ads, you’ll need an author page in order to do so. Meta ads, when focused only on Facebook and not Meta’s many other platforms, can be incredibly profitable. Any ads that appear on users’ feeds will be shown as posts from your author page, encouraging people to visit even if they don’t click on the “buy now” button.

You can also “invite the likes”. Facebook users can like an ad the same as any other post. If you click on the thumb’s up or heart icon, you’ll see a list of who liked or loved your ad. Next to their name you’ll see an invite button. Click on that and they’ll be invited to follow your page. Do this once a week and you’ll be rewarded with steady growth.

The most popular pages offer a mix of personal posts about the writing process, photos, shared articles of interest to the reader, and the occasional announcement of a new book or promotion. I say “occasional” because the author page should make readers feel they’re cozying up to the author and getting to know them better, not being sold to.

Since my historical mysteries take place in exotic locales such as Egypt and Morocco, I share lots of photos of my travels there. I also share interesting articles on Egyptology (like the discovery of the tomb of Thutmose II. Yay!), updates on my writing, and photos of books I’m reading that my followers might like. I post at least every other day. Only about one in ten of my posts have some sort of sales angle.

Your content depends on your writing. You don’t have to be too personal or share photos of yourself if you don’t want to. Bestselling science fiction, fantasy, and paranormal author Sarah Noffke, https://www.facebook.com/officialsarahnoffke, offers a mix of cover reveals, teaser quotes, and cute photos with her husband. Aviation thriller writer James Blatch, https://www.facebook.com/jamesblatchauthor, shares lots of photos of fighter jets and vintage video from the Cold War, the same era his novels are set in. Archaeological thriller author Luke Richardson, https://www.facebook.com/lukerichardsonauthor, focuses on travel on his Facebook author page, much like his books do.

Facebook author pages are an effective sales tool. These are your hardcore fans. When you announce a new release or a promotion, you can expect a nice bump in sales. Timed to coincide with other promotions such as new Meta or Amazon ads, or promotions such as Bargain Booksy, this can level up the effect. Just don’t be too pushy. For marketing on your author page, less is definitely more.

So start an author page and start building your readership today!

BIO: Sean McLachlan has been a full-time writer for 25 years and is currently penning several historical mystery series. You may find him at www.seanmclachlan.net and on his Facebook author page www.facebook.com/writersean