Writing Friday: Marketing

Hello, friends!
Usually on Fridays I talk about writing, but today I'm going to talk about something that usually goes along with it...marketing.

Most authors, whether traditionally published by a large or small press, or self-published, have to deal with marketing.
And as-of-yet-unpublished authors get to look forward to it in the future of their writing career, so it may be useful to start paying attention to marketing now.

Now, are you here to just read up on your marketing strategies? That may not be a great idea. Because just a few months ago, before my novel was published, I had no idea about how to market. I used Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads, and may have thought I knew what I was doing, but I did not.
And to tell you the truth, I am still not sure what I am doing.

My advice to writers: research, research, research marketing over time. I tried to cram a lot of info about marketing in at once and that resulted in a horrible headache. I don't recommend it. Sometimes, when I think about all the marketing things I need to prepare, I stress out. It can be pretty scary! But if I look at everything in little bits, it is much less overwhelming.

Some things I have done so far:
1. Ordered some pens, magnets, postcards, and business cards from Vistaprint. These are awesome for in-person events.
2. Sent out press releases to local media.
3. Put together a list of local schools and libraries I want to speak at.
4. Scheduled some guest blog posts/interviews.
5. Scheduled reviewers to review my novel and put their review on their blog.
6. Created a press kit and put it on my blog. (Find it here)

Now, I plan to do more to market Swept to Sea, but this is what I have done so far.

Have you tried your hand at marketing? What worked, and what didn't? If you haven't done any marketing, what part sounds like the most fun/least fun to you?