What Type of Author Could You Be? A Visibility Quiz for New Authors
What Type of Author Could You Be? A Visibility Quiz for New Authors
PART 1 OF THE AUTHOR VISIBILITY QUIZ SERIES
You know you want to write.
Maybe you've already written the book.
Maybe you're still staring at Chapter Three and wondering why your characters—or your research—have suddenly stopped cooperating. 😄
Either way, sooner or later you'll hear something like:
“You need to build your author platform.”
Then comes the list.
You should be on social media.
You need an email list.
You should speak.
Try podcasts.
Network.
Write blogs.
Create videos.
Attend conferences.
Build a community.
And somewhere around suggestion number seventeen, you may begin wondering whether becoming an author requires cloning yourself.
It doesn't.
Here's something I wish more new authors heard:
You do not have to market yourself exactly like every other author.
You already have natural strengths in the way you communicate, connect, encourage, teach, and create.
Those strengths can give you clues about the visibility strategies that may eventually work best for you.
So let's discover where you might naturally begin.
🧭
Short Answer: What Is an Author Visibility Type?
An Author Visibility Type describes the way an author may naturally connect with readers, share a message, and create meaningful impact.
For this quiz, we'll explore five possible starting strengths:
The Authority Author
The Community Builder
The Connector
The Spotlight Author
The Content Creator
You may have one clear type.
You may have two that are almost tied.
That's perfectly fine.
This quiz isn't designed to put you into an author box and nail down the lid.
It's designed to answer a much more useful question:
Where might I naturally connect with readers—and where should I begin experimenting?
What If You've Never Marketed Yourself Before?
Good.
Seriously.
You don't need previous marketing experience for this quiz.
You don't need to have:
Been interviewed on a podcast
Spoken at a conference
Built an email list
Hosted a reader group
Written fifty blog posts
Attended seventeen networking events while carrying a color-coded stack of business cards
You're new.
You're allowed to be new. 😄
Instead of answering based on what you've already done, answer based on what sounds most natural to you.
Think about how you already interact with people.
What do friends ask you for?
How do you naturally communicate?
What kinds of activities sound interesting?
Which ones make you curious enough to try?
Your results won't be a final diagnosis of your author career.
They're a starting hypothesis.
Then you'll test that hypothesis.
That's where things get really useful.
Why Your Visibility Style Matters
Authors often ask:
“What should authors be doing to market their books?”
That's not necessarily the best question.
A better one might be:
“What should this author be doing?”
Because your strengths may be completely different from someone else's.
One author loves standing in front of an audience.
Another would rather reorganize every closet in the house than willingly approach a microphone.
One writer naturally gathers people.
Another connects people with one another.
Another explains complicated ideas so clearly that everyone starts taking notes.
Another can create written content people save, share, and return to again and again.
None of those authors is doing visibility wrong.
They're simply starting from different strengths.
And that's what we're going to uncover.
Take the New Author Visibility Quiz
Grab a piece of paper or open the notes app on your phone.
For each question, choose the answer that sounds most like you.
Not the answer you think a successful author is supposed to choose.
Keep track of your letters.
Ready?
Let's find your starting direction. 🧭
1. Someone asks you to share something you know with a small group. Which response sounds most like you?
A. I'd enjoy explaining what I know and answering questions.
B. I'd want everyone to feel comfortable participating.
C. I'd probably start thinking about people or resources that could benefit them.
D. I'd enjoy presenting the idea out loud.
E. I'd rather organize my thoughts into something useful they could read.
2. Which compliment would mean the most to you?
A. “I understand that so much better now.”
B. “You made me feel like I belonged.”
C. “You connected me with exactly what I needed.”
D. “You really inspired me.”
E. “I saved what you wrote so I can use it again.”
3. You're at a gathering where you don't know many people. What sounds most like you?
A. I usually end up talking about something I know well.
B. I look for one or two people and try to make them feel welcome.
C. I enjoy meeting people and discovering who should know whom.
D. I'm comfortable joining conversations and speaking up.
E. I notice ideas and experiences I might want to write about later.
4. Which activity sounds most natural to you?
A. Teaching others about a subject I know well.
B. Nurturing a community of readers.
C. Building relationships with other authors and industry professionals.
D. Speaking to an audience.
E. Creating useful or shareable written content.
5. What do people most often come to you for?
A. Answers, advice, or information.
B. Encouragement or support.
C. Recommendations, introductions, or connections.
D. Motivation or inspiration.
E. Something you've written, explained, or created.
6. When you share an idea, story, or message with someone, what kind of response would mean the most to you?
A. “Now I understand that much better.”
B. “I feel encouraged and less alone.”
C. “You connected me with exactly the person or resource I needed.”
D. “You inspired me to actually do something differently.”
E. “I'm going to save this and use it later.”
YOUR VISIBILITY TYPE IS ALSO ABOUT THE CHANGE YOU CREATE
[FORMAT THIS SECTION IN A DIFFERENT FONT OR STYLE IN 360]
Your visibility style is not only about where you show up.
It is also about what happens in the reader, listener, or audience member because you showed up.
Authority Author — creates change through clarity and knowledge
Community Builder — creates change through belonging and encouragement
Connector — creates change through relationships and opportunity
Spotlight Author — creates change through inspiration and action
Content Creator — creates change through ideas and tools people can apply
Your goal is not simply to be seen.
It is to use the way you naturally communicate to create meaningful change in the people you are called to reach. 🧭
7. Imagine someone invites you to participate in an author event. Which part sounds most interesting?
A. Sharing what I've learned or know.
B. Spending time with readers and creating a welcoming experience.
C. Meeting authors, organizers, and other people in the industry.
D. Being interviewed, presenting, or participating in a panel.
E. Creating something before or after the event that people could read or share.
8. You unexpectedly have two free hours to work on your future author business. Which sounds most appealing?
A. Develop something I could eventually teach.
B. Think about how I could better connect with readers.
C. Reach out to people I'd like to get to know professionally.
D. Practice talking about my book or message.
E. Write a useful blog, article, newsletter, or resource.
9. Which situation sounds most energizing?
A. Someone asks a question and I know how to guide them toward an answer.
B. People begin connecting because I've created a welcoming space.
C. Two people benefit because I introduced them.
D. Someone hears me speak and decides to take action.
E. Someone discovers something I've written and says it was exactly what they needed.
10. If you could strengthen one skill this year, which would you choose?
A. Becoming more confident sharing what I know.
B. Creating stronger relationships with readers.
C. Building a professional network.
D. Becoming a stronger speaker or interviewer.
E. Creating content people want to read and share.
11. Which statement sounds most like you?
A. “I have knowledge or experience that could serve someone.”
B. “I like making people feel connected and included.”
C. “Relationships often create opportunities.”
D. “I like communicating ideas out loud.”
E. “Writing is one of the strongest ways I communicate.”
12. Imagine your author life several years from now. Which picture sounds most exciting?
A. I'm known as a trusted voice in an area I understand well.
B. I've built a loyal community of readers who feel connected to me and one another.
C. I've developed relationships that regularly lead to collaborations and opportunities.
D. I'm speaking, teaching, interviewing, or appearing in public-facing settings.
E. My articles, blogs, newsletters, and resources regularly bring new readers to my work.
Score Your New Author Visibility Quiz
Now count your answers.
Mostly A's:
The Authority Author
Mostly B's:
The Community Builder
Mostly C's:
The Connector
Mostly D's:
The Spotlight Author
Mostly E's:
The Content Creator
If you have a tie, don't worry.
You may already be showing signs of both a primary type and a supporting strength.
For example:
Authority + Content Creator
Community Builder + Connector
Spotlight + Authority
Your combination may eventually become one of the most valuable things you learn about your author visibility strategy.
But remember:
This is your starting point, not your permanent label.
Now let's see what your result might mean.
The Authority Author
Your Strength: Clarity and Knowledge
You may naturally enjoy:
Teaching
Explaining
Answering questions
Researching
Guiding others
Sharing knowledge or experience
Your authority doesn't necessarily come from a string of letters after your name.
It can come from:
Professional experience
Education
Ministry
Research
Specialized knowledge
Life experience
A hobby or field you've studied deeply
Even fiction authors may have areas of authority connected to their books.
Perhaps you understand military life, history, medicine, law enforcement, parenting, horses, travel, adoption, faith, business, or another subject your stories touch.
The Change You May Create
You create change through clarity and knowledge.
People may walk away from you thinking:
“Now I understand.”
Visibility Activities to Try
Experiment with:
Educational social posts
Guest articles
Short workshops
Podcast interviews
Teaching
Speaking on a subject you know
Helpful resources
Your First Action Step
Write down:
Three things people already ask me about.
Those may point toward subjects you could eventually teach, write about, or discuss in interviews.
The Community Builder
Your Strength: Belonging and Encouragement
You may naturally create places where people feel:
Welcome
Seen
Encouraged
Included
Supported
You don't simply gather people.
You care about what happens once they're there.
You may be the person who notices someone standing alone.
Or the one who remembers what someone told you three months ago.
Or the one who creates a conversation where people begin talking to one another.
The Change You May Create
You create change through belonging and encouragement.
People may walk away from you thinking:
“I'm not alone.”
Visibility Activities to Try
Experiment with:
Reader groups
Book clubs
Email conversations
Small gatherings
Online communities
Reader events
Discussion questions
Your First Action Step
Think of one simple way you could invite people into conversation.
It might be:
“Reply and tell me…”
Sometimes community begins with one question.
The Connector
Your Strength: Relationships and Opportunity
Connectors notice people.
And possibilities.
You're often thinking:
She should meet him.
That organization would love this.
I know someone who might know someone.
That ability can become enormously valuable in an author business because relationships often lead to opportunities that cannot be created by simply posting more frequently.
The Change You May Create
You create change through relationships and opportunity.
People may walk away from you thinking:
“That connection opened a door for me.”
Visibility Activities to Try
Experiment with:
Author groups
Conferences
Networking events
Collaborations
Partnerships
Professional organizations
Bookstores
Community events
Your First Action Step
Reach out to one person you'd genuinely like to know better.
Not because you need something.
Because relationships start with relationships.
Revolutionary concept, I know. 😄
The Spotlight Author
Your Strength: Inspiration and Action
You may communicate especially well when people can:
Hear you
See you
Respond to your energy
Experience your personality
Interact with you directly
That doesn't necessarily mean you're completely fearless.
Plenty of good speakers still feel nervous.
The question is what happens after you begin.
Do you come alive?
Do ideas flow?
Do people respond?
Do you enjoy seeing a message create change in real time?
The Change You May Create
You create change through inspiration and action.
People may walk away from you thinking:
“I'm going to do something differently because of what I heard.”
That's different from simply enjoying attention.
The microphone isn't the goal.
Transformation is.
Visibility Activities to Try
Experiment with:
Speaking
Podcast interviews
Short videos
Workshops
Panels
Webinars
Livestreams
Small-group teaching
Your First Action Step
Choose one idea connected to your message and explain it out loud for five minutes.
You can practice with:
A friend
Your phone
Your dog
A houseplant
The houseplant will probably be a very attentive audience. 😉
Notice how you feel once you get going.
The Content Creator
Your Strength: Ideas and Tools People Can Use
You naturally process and communicate through things you create.
That might include:
Blog posts
Articles
Newsletters
Devotionals
Pinterest content
Guides
Checklists
Social posts
Downloads
You're able to take an idea and shape it into something people can discover, save, share, or apply.
And that's important.
Your content can travel into rooms you never enter.
The Change You May Create
You create change through ideas and tools people can apply.
People may walk away thinking:
“I can use this.”
Visibility Activities to Try
Experiment with:
Blogging
Newsletters
Guest posts
Pinterest
Articles
Downloadable resources
Devotionals
Social content
Your First Action Step
Take one idea you care about and create one small useful piece of content around it.
Don't try to create seventeen pieces.
One will do nicely. 😄
Your Type Is a Starting Point—Not a Box
Here's something important.
If your result says Content Creator, that doesn't mean you can announce:
“Excellent. I shall never speak to another human again.”
Nice try.
And if you're a Spotlight Author, you can't toss your website into the woods and decide written communication no longer matters.
Your result gives you a starting strength.
It doesn't give you permission to stop growing.
Sometimes the strategy that feels natural is where you begin.
And sometimes God opens a door that stretches you into something you didn't realize you could do.
The goal is:
Know your strengths. Test them. Develop them. Stay willing to grow.
Now Test Your Author Visibility Type
Because you're a newer author, we're not stopping with the quiz.
You haven't necessarily had enough experience yet to know whether your result is accurate.
So we're going into the field.
🧭
New Author Visibility Field Test
Over the next four weeks, try one small activity from each visibility type.
You do not need a huge audience.
You don't need invitations.
You don't need to spend a pile of money.
The goal is simply to gather information.
Try Authority
Teach something you know.
You could:
Share three educational tips.
Write a short teaching post.
Explain something useful in an email.
Offer a brief teaching to a small group.
Then ask:
Did I enjoy teaching?
Did people respond to what I shared?
Try Community Builder
Create a simple opportunity for conversation.
You could:
Ask a meaningful question on social media.
Invite readers to reply to an email.
Invite several authors to coffee.
Begin a small discussion.
Then ask:
Did creating connection energize me?
Did people interact with one another?
Try Connector
Build one intentional relationship.
You could:
Attend an author gathering.
Introduce two people who should know each other.
Reach out to another author.
Follow up with someone you recently met.
Then ask:
Did relationship-building feel natural?
Did I enjoy making connections?
Try Spotlight
Share something out loud.
You could:
Record a short video.
Practice an interview with a friend.
Give a five-minute talk.
Participate in a small-group discussion.
Then ask:
Once I started talking, did I enjoy it?
Did I feel like I was connecting with the listener?
Did my message encourage someone to think, feel, or act differently?
And if your first thought was, Where is the nearest table I can hide under?
Make a note of that too. 😄
Try Content Creator
Create something useful.
You could write:
A short blog
A newsletter
An article
A Pinterest pin
A checklist
A short downloadable resource
Then ask:
Did I enjoy shaping the idea?
Did someone find it useful?
Rate Each Visibility Experiment
After each experiment, give yourself a score from 1–5 in four areas.
Enjoyment
Did I enjoy doing this?
Ease
Did this use strengths that felt fairly natural?
Response
Did anyone engage, respond, ask questions, share it, or show interest?
Potential
Could I see myself getting better at this and doing it consistently?
Write down your scores.
Don't judge them.
You're gathering information.
That's what good explorers do before choosing a route. 🧭
Don't Only Measure Numbers
This is especially important for new authors.
Don't decide an experiment failed because:
Only three people responded.
Your video didn't get hundreds of views.
Your blog didn't go viral.
Nobody handed you a publishing contract fifteen minutes later.
You're new.
Look for smaller signs.
Did one person respond thoughtfully?
Did someone ask a question?
Did the conversation continue?
Did you enjoy doing it?
Did you want to try again?
Did your message create even a small amount of change?
Those are signals worth noticing.
Your Next Compass Stop: Keep Testing Your Visibility Style
This first quiz gives you a starting point based on how you naturally communicate, connect, teach, encourage, and create.
Now it's time to gather some real-world information.
Over the next few weeks, use the New Author Visibility Field Test to experiment with several visibility styles. Then return for Part 2: The Experienced Author Visibility Quiz.
Pay attention to:
What you enjoyed
What felt natural
How people responded
What created meaningful connection or change
What you'd willingly do again
Then come back in four weeks for:
Part 2: The Experienced Author Visibility Quiz
That quiz will ask different questions.
Instead of:
“What do I think I'd enjoy?”
You'll be able to answer:
“What have I actually tried—and what happened?”
Then we'll compare your natural tendencies with your real-world experience.
You may confirm your original Author Visibility Type.
Or you might discover a strength you never expected.
Either result is valuable.
You'll have something much more useful than another list of things authors are supposedly “required” to do.
You'll have evidence about what works for you.
🧭
Keep your scores!
You'll want them when Part 2 arrives.
Waypoint Challenge: Pick Your First Experiment
Don't finish this quiz and immediately try all five strategies before dinner.
Pick one.
Choose one small visibility experiment to try this week.
Then rate it:
Enjoyment. Ease. Response. Potential.
Next week, try another.
You're not building your entire marketing strategy today.
You're gathering clues.
One step at a time.
Frequently Asked Questions About Author Visibility Types
Can a brand-new author take an Author Visibility Quiz?
Yes. New authors don't need previous marketing experience to begin identifying their potential visibility strengths. Start by considering how you naturally communicate, teach, create, encourage, and build relationships. Then test different visibility activities to discover which ones work best for you.
Can an author have more than one visibility type?
Absolutely. Many authors will have one primary Author Visibility Type and one or two strong secondary types. For example, an Authority Author may also be a Content Creator, while a Community Builder may also be a Connector.
What if my quiz result doesn't feel right?
Treat your result as a starting hypothesis rather than a permanent label. Try small activities from each visibility type and evaluate your enjoyment, ease, audience response, and long-term potential. Experience may confirm your first result—or reveal a strength you hadn't noticed.
How does a new author decide which marketing strategy to use?
Look for the intersection of your natural strengths, your message, your audience, and the results you're beginning to see. Test several small strategies before investing heavily in any one approach. Over time, focus more energy on activities that create connection, meaningful impact, and sustainable growth.
Related Compass Stops
Continue exploring the business side of writing:
Question for You
What was your starting Author Visibility Type?
Did the answer feel natural—or did it surprise you?
And which visibility type are you going to test first?
Related Resource
Need a clearer next step for your author journey?
Explore DeeDee Lake's Author Resources for practical tools, encouragement, and guidance for navigating the business side of writing.
Explore Author Resources:
https://deedeelake.com/author-resources
Recommended Resources
What Makes a Book “Publicity-Friendly?” — Abigail Monti
This article from Unsolicited Manuscript explores qualities that can create additional publicity possibilities for authors, including authority, community, networks, and willingness to engage publicly.
https://unsolicitedmanuscript.substack.com/p/what-makes-a-book-publicity-friendly
Novel Marketing Podcast
The Novel Marketing Podcast offers practical information about author platforms, marketing, promotion, publishing, and reaching readers.
https://www.novelmarketing.com/
Final Thought
You don't need to know your perfect marketing strategy before you begin.
You don't need to be everywhere.
And you certainly don't need to copy the author next to you.
Start by paying attention to how you've been wired to communicate and connect.
Then experiment.
Notice what feels natural.
Notice where people respond.
Notice where your words create change.
Develop those strengths—and remain willing to stretch when the right opportunity comes along.
Your author type isn't your box.
It's your starting point.
Now choose one direction and take the next step. 🧭
