WildFire Marketing and Barbour Books congratulate novelist, Wanda Brunstetter, on a very rare author achievement. Since April 2011, Wanda has written six consecutive novels that all made the New York Times bestseller list, which include, The Hope of Spring, Goodbye to Yesterday The Half-Stitched Amish Quilting Club, The Healing, Struggle, and The Journey. This is an incredible accomplishment in such a short period of time. Prior to April, 2011, Brunstetter had written over 50 novels and sold over 5,000,000 copies. However, none of her books had landed on the major bestseller lists.
WildFire Marketing consulted with Wanda to reposition her as the go-to author in the competitive genre of Amish fiction by developing a captivating new brand and building her a powerful new website (see case study with before-and-after pictures). In the first 30 days, Wanda’s new website received the highest amount of traffic in her author history. Since that time, Wanda’s website visitors and newsletter subscribers have grown by over 60%. Rob Eagar, president of WildFire Marketing, stated, “Wanda is a great example of how quickly an author can grow by investing in innovative marketing principles and continuously engaging with readers. I’m thrilled to see her hit the bestseller lists six times in a row.”
Barbour Publishing supported Wanda’s growth by amplifying her media appearances, sponsoring fun contests, scheduling author book-signings in popular areas, and generating support among the key bookstore retailers. To date, over 6,000,000 copies of Wanda’s books have been sold. Mary Burns, vice president of marketing, said, ”We enjoy working with Wanda and helping her connect with her fan base. With social media becoming so prominent in marketing fiction today, developing those connection points is so important. Wanda is one example of how do this right.”
Wanda’s novels are popular because they accurately portray the Amish way of life, which the author researches extensively to create her stories. She travels throughout the year, visiting Amish friends. She’s grateful that her books are well-read and trusted by the Amish, who credit her for giving readers a deeper understanding of the people and their customs. Whenever she visits Amish communities, Wanda says she’s drawn to their peaceful lifestyle, sincerity, and close family ties. Their way of life is a stark contrast to the chaos and stressful way that most modern families seem to live today.
Each year, thousands of authors publish hundreds of thousands of new books. However, very few of those titles are fortunate enough to make the bestseller lists. Wanda’s success of writing six consecutive bestsellers in less than two years makes her stand out even more. Her dedication to the craft of writing and the selection of a strong support team displays an example that helps rewrite what’s possible for authors in the future.
