How do I go about it? Marketing/advertising is daunting

This is a very big set of questions with a whole lot of options and variables. There is no one way to market and we all - traditional or indie - have to work through trial and error to find what works for us.

I'm going to recommend a Facebook group called 20Booksto50K. It's a group devoted entirely to the business side of publishing. They have a massive following and are well-modded. They also have a great many articles and spread sheets and in-depth discussions about the various marketing methods available. Before you come in with questions, it's recommended that you search the tags and threads, first. Chances are good that your question has been answered already.

Good luck and grats on your book!

 

I second the above. More generally, start hanging out in groups that have to do with book marketing. Search Google, Facebook, Instagram, forums, all the likely suspects. Rather than look for a recipe for success, just start joining those communities. Spend time there. You will find that some things sound useful, some confusing, and some irrelevant. Six months later, what had been confusing will come clear but new things will be confusing. I'm six years into it and the cycle continues.

And even after all that, getting from unknown to nearly unknown is a long process. Getting to well known (as in, a steady income stream) is nearly impossible. And getting successful (enough to quit your day job) is roughly on the same odds as making a professional sports team. IOW, it ain't easy.

This is where I am: I have a couple of things I do. I won't say I fully understand them, but they seem to do at least some good and I don't have the heart to take on another platform. IOW, I have found a niche. Maybe one day I'll step beyond and try to add in FB, but right now it's Amazon ads, a newsletter, and a couple of services like Fussy Librarian to run promos. Each of those still have aspects that are mysterious or under-used by me.

Here's an analogy. I decide I want to "learn computers." Maybe I learn enough to use a word processor and a spreadsheet and a browser. I haven't learned *everything* about my spreadsheet, but it's enough, and I don't care to learn how to do databases. At another level, maybe I learn all that, learn to make web pages with html, etc. At another level, I'm learning about Internet protocols, the seven layers of the OSI model, and the difference between packet switches and routers. At still another, I'm programming. Or I'm making circuit boards.

"Learn computers" is roughly the same as "learn marketing". Just start learning. At some point you'll reach a comfort level (a discomfort level?) and will be satisfied. But join some communities. The worst thing to do is go it alone, or read a book and charge ahead. And yeah, that takes time. It would be better to have begun two years ago, but now is better than later!

 

This always gives me hope.

There are a couple of things that have worked for us to help build our reputation and our audience. I highly recommend getting a website and naming it something easy for readers to remember, like your pen name. It will be your workhorse and should be the first thing that comes up in searches. Social media platforms come and go, and as a result maintaining a presence on them it like building in someone else's sandbox. At any moment, they can take it away. It happened with Myspace, it happened with Google+, and it will happen again. That being said, I established our domain name and our social media presences in 2013, four years before we released our first book. It helped. Just don't expect much loyalty from the companies that provide your chosen platforms. You don't want to hang everything on shifting sands.

Also, participate in groups and on forums in your sub-genre. It's called 'finding your tribe' and it helps a lot to have friends - real friends - who understand the business and the craft of writing. These friends are your tribe and you will have each other's backs at release time, and just anytime it gets hard. Don't be spammy and don't be pushy. Just be authentic and you'll be fine.