Although I worked for a computer software company, I am not a technical person. I didn’t grow up with computers and my learning has been trial and error. Sometimes this learning has been painful and other times it has been fun. Learning about computers and the Internet is an integral part of writing.

Still, learning is hard. I’m still hoping I’ve crossed some kind of threshold and become computer literate. This is partly true, and I keep learning new things.

I recently listened to a podcast, “Metadata Is Your Brand,” by Kathy Meis, founder of Bublish. According to Meis, metadata is information that computers use to access information or, in the case of an author, “online book discovery.” If you and I had metadata dashboards, how would we rate? What would we rate?

Book category. Your editor will be happy to help you choose a category. Since I write books about health and wellness, I thought my category would be “health.” not so Turns out they fit into “self-help” and “inspiration.” You should know your category(ies) six months before your book goes into production.

Keywords. Immediately after signing my book contract, my publisher asked me to think of keywords. Some of the words: family, caregiver, caregiver, care recipient, home health, and health care. Brainstorm keywords for your book and try to find 25 of them.

Photos. Look at book covers on publishers’ websites and on Amazon. Note that some covers stand out and others look poor in comparison. Your book cover should be eye-catching and include elements that represent the content. Book covers can be changed. When my publishing company was bought by another company, I asked them to change the cover of a book. The owner was happy to comply.

Rentals. This category includes the publisher’s website, Amazon listing, eBook listing, and online presence. With these things in mind, I added additional information to the bottom of my emails: Visit (website link), Learn (blog link), Like (Facebook link), Connect (LinkedIn link), and Follow (link). Twitter).

Get Amazon reviews. Your options include asking your friends to post reviews, paying for reviews, putting an electronic version on a review website, book groups, and clubs. Getting reviews is a slow process, so wait a long time. Send kind reminders to friends who have agreed to write reviews but haven’t.

Use hashtags. This is a new practice for me and it may be new to you. Think of hashtags as a file category system. Rachael Sprung explains it in his internet article, “How to Use Hashtags in Your Social Media Marketing.” His three suggestions: 1) Be unique and specific; 2) Make it easy to remember; 3) Use in multiple social networks.

You can improve your metadata information, but it is an ongoing and detailed task. What would you look for if you wanted to discover your book? Think creatively, think technically, and think metadata. Help spread the word about the book you care so much about.