This is the #1 question I get from people who are just starting to test the waters of nonfiction publishing. What is a platform, and why the heck does it matter? Shouldn’t writers just focus on honing their craft and revising their manuscripts, and worry about actually selling copies of the book once (and if) it’s actually published?
Well, that’s how it used to work. Writers used to be able to hole up in dark offices for years as they perfected their book, and once published, they could just sit back as the critical acclaim and sales came rolling in. And to a degree, some extremely well-established writers can still do that. But 99.9% of authors need to take the promotion of their book into their own hands, or that book will never make it into a reader’s hands. And the best way to get eyeballs reading the words you toiled over? Build a platform that attracts those eyeballs, even before you have a book to share with them.