In the last few weeks, video blogger Gary Vaynerchuk received a 10 book deal with publisher Harper Collins. Gary is not much of a reader and he was not even looking for a book contract, so how did he achieve what so many authors fail to? The simple answer is that he has a platform. He has an audience and a way to reach them which guarantees him exposure and book sales.

Here are 7 ways you can build your own platform as an author.

1. Start your own blog and write about your book, your niche area or just your writing. You can sell your books from here too, but most importantly, you have a place to connect to readers. You can express yourself and be heard. You can have a free blog in very little time with Blogger or Wordpress so it doesn’t need to be technically difficult.

2. Get involved in social networking. It may be overwhelming but you need to network in order to make contact with people. Choose one or two sites and become active on them. It could be mySpace, Facebook, GoodReads or Twitter. It doesn’t matter too much as long as you network, connect with people and make new contacts.

3. Write and submit articles. A great way to get your name and your book out there is by writing articles and submitting them to sites like EzineArticles.com. These are syndicated to sites that need content with your bio so can drive traffic back to your blog or your website.

4. Make videos for YouTube. Videos are not hard anymore. You just need a webcam or a Flipcam or a cheap camcorder. Talk about your book or your topic and load it onto YouTube as a basic starter. If you love it, you can become a video blogger!

5. Do a podcast or an audio download. People love to hear a voice as well as read the words. You can get a small mp3 recorder for under $100 or use a microphone plugged into your computer. You can do entire works of fiction by podcast like author J.C. Hutchins, or you can do interviews with other authors, or talk about your work.

6. Send out a press release. You don’t need to have a publicist in order to send out a press release. You just need to know the format, have a newsworthy topic and send it to a specific person, then follow up. Remember that the media are always looking for stories. Choose a holiday or a slow time for news and you could be onto a winner!

7. Speak about your book. Build your audience more locally through speaking about your book. Many organisations are looking for people to speak at breakfasts, conventions, book groups, libraries and other places. Offer great content in your speeches and people will want your book. Video your appearances and put them on YouTube for even more exposure!

If this all seems too much, just start with one thing and you will find that over time it builds up and you too will have a platform.

Bio: Joanna Penn is an author, speaker and consultant. Joanna’s blog The Creative Penn offers information for authors on writing, self-publishing, print-on-demand, internet sales and promotion…for your book. She is also the the author of “From Book to Market”, available in ebook format and coming soon on Amazon.com.