Joe began by saying he sees writers divided into 3 categories: Novices, who are trying to figure out the basics of dialogue, plot, character development, location, reversals, etc., and really refining their craft. That’s a journey that never ends, but they’re just starting out on it.

Next are those who write for fun. Maybe it’s stress relief or they just like the creativity, and that’s good enough for them. He loves both of those, but they don't need publicists. 

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His talk was directed to the 3rd category: Writers who at some point want to publish their books. Joe provided a handout which is included in the September newsletter and which is posted here the website.

 

What I will include here is what is not on that handout. The thrust of his lecture, remember, is for writers who want to publish. Joe said that a writer who wants to publish is actually launching a small business and to be successful, must think of themselves in that way, with their book as their product, and themselves as their brand. You can indulge your creative side while writing, but you have to cultivate that business side if you want to sell what you write in any significant quantity. Stepping back from your work and looking at it objectively will help you sell more books and will help any PR and marketing people you hire.

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The first thing is to decide who is in the demographic that will buy your book,. That’s what he’s looking for when he reads a manuscript. That’s what he uses to generate press releases, and different types of media need different kinds of releases.

You also need to develop a 5-minute talk about your book. Not the "elevator pitch" you would use for an agent or a publisher, but a talk such as you might use if you got a short interview on a local podcast, or a morning TV or radio talk show. (That’s rare for a breakout novel; think about as if you were in one of the author panels at the Miami Book Fair addressing a roomful of fairgoers. What would you tell that audience about your book, not just to inform them, but to make them line up outside for an autographed copy? You can practice it as a Featured Author at our booth at the Miami Book Fair in November!) Don’t try to encapsulate the plot into 3 minutes. That time is better spent talking about how you want to impact people. Say what you want them to be thinking about after reading your book. Tell them about your book’s message, if you have one. Your talk’s purpose is not to tell them the plot; it’s to entice them into buying it. Even if you’re being asked about the writing process, you can come back, “like I do in my book.” Your goal should still be sell them your book.

Think about your overarching theme: Is it about power? A coming of age story? Love conquers all? An underdog getting its day? Not giving up? Redemption? Transformation? Knowing that will help your publicist, who has to build the press releases around these things.

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If your book is unfinished, you can use these questions to guide you towards making your book unique. You can bake that into your characters and your plotting. Decide how many books you expect to sell. For first time authors, it won’t be very many. Joe says that’s okay if you have other books planned. Your first book lays the foundation. Media people and podcasters will learn that you exist. You’re getting your name out there and creating a backlist. And if your success grows with each book, your new readers will start buying your backlist books.

Joe also stressed the importance of creating a social media presence. Joe (like me and probably most of us) doesn’t like social media, but it’s crucial for promoting your book. You have to have an account on X, Facebook, Instagram, all of those. Building up your followers can take forever. (There is no finish line, so it’s really kind of a death march, if you think of it). Don’t wait until your manuscript is finished to create your social media presence. When Joe starts pitching the media, one of the first questions is, “How many followers does this author have?” Joe points out that media outlets have a symbiotic relationship with authors, because just as the media outlet’s audience are your potential customers, your followers are also theirs. The higher your numbers are, the more you can help grow them. So, as irritating as it might be, social media will help you get interviews on podcasts, help you get book reviews, and help you get name recognition, and all that will help you get sales. You have to build that up. If you haven’t started yet, start now

If you don’t understand social media, there are You-Tube videos that will walk you through it Whatever your weekly schedule is, take 30 to 45 minutes of your slowest day every week and devote that to working on nothing but your social media. Make it a habit.

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Then, he got into the nitty gritty of what a publicist does, and doesn’t do, by going through the process. An author would send the manuscript about 2 months before its launch date. Even if you’re still editing it, even if you need one more draft… that’s not too early. Those final edits won’t affect a publicist’s work. The publicist never judges your writing; he’s only looking at the ms for the media angles that will best promote it and where it’s most media-friendly. Is your book a “summer read” or something to curl up by the fireplace with? Does it tie in to any major holidays, e.g., Memorial Day, or Christmas?

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Joe stressed that publicists do not control the media. They can’t compel any media outlet to mention you or your book. Instead, he has to work with them and make them want to schedule you in their releases. Joe will help you manage your expectations and steer you towards what is doable, and away from what is not. He will send your press release to thousands of media outlets. He can’t force them accept the press release. His job is to get you and your book name recognition in the media, meaning, newspapers, magazines, TV and radio shows, blogs, podcasts, etc. To let them know who you are and what you’ve written and why they should think it will matter to their audience.

It can take months or even years to get any favorable response. Sometimes longer, because the media can reject a book but keep the query in their archives, and then a breaking related news story much later can catapult a previously published book into instant relevance.

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Joe doesn’t take on any clients that he doesn’t believe he’ll do well with. He has enough work that he doesn’t need to have an author waste thousands of dollars and not get any reviews. Once he has the angles figured out, he goes to his database of several lists with tens of thousands of media people, but not to all of them because many of them are specialized. What appeals to romance media won’t be sent to sports media people. He will tailor the angle to the media person he’s sending to. All communication is via email and the person he’s sending to might get many hundreds of such emails every day. He has to craft a subject line that will stand out against all that.

Joe finds setting up book tours is not a good use of his time. He aims at bigger audiences of thousands of buyers. The average bookstore reading will take a lot of time for him to set up, and there will be perhaps 30 people at the event, resulting in maybe a dozen sales. He would rather use that time to get you on a blog or podcast with an audience of thousands, which can result in hundreds of sales. When he sets up an interview, he will give you the questions in advance and go over the best way to answer and to present yourself. You also need to start on this 2 months before launch because the media already has their current month schedule set. If you wait until the launch month, they’re booking guests for the month or two after that, by which time your launch is old news.

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Joe doesn’t edit manuscripts. But if you send him the penultimate version, he can go through it and give you red flags about some content that might impact media friendliness. Local morning-show hosts may refuse a book because of a certain scene. They know that if they promote thatb ook, they’ll get a terrible backlash from their audience, with letters written, cancel culture, etc. and might even lose their show over it.

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The basic service also doesn’t include ad buys. He can do those, but that’s an extra service. A YA book, for example might be worth while buying ads in school newspapers of large schools. They also aren’t involved in the distribution of the book. He doesn’t create websites or media platforms. He will offer guidance. Speaking bureaus typically have a form to fill out and they’re all different. You can do those yourself. Joe charges extra because that takes away from his other work. If you do hire a publicist, make sure you have a separate email folder and desktop folder to track all email correspondence.

His agency charges between $2000 to $4000 per month, with at least 2 or 3 months, so you’re looking at investing around $8,000.

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Some promotional ideas: If your book is set in a country, send a few copies to that place’s tourism board. He gage the example of Ireland. Send copies to the Irish embassy or consulate. There might be an event you tie in with. If there is a local Irish pub, have some coasters made and ask if they'll use those around the date of your book launch. But you never know. If your book is set in some other State, send a few copies to that State's Tourism board. 

They may have gift shops that will buy a few copies, or be having an event. If it’s a historical novel, send a few copies to the appropriate museum or historical society. Send promotional materials like bookmarks and posters with your website and QR code.

Go to a library and in the section where your book would be, insert a promotional bookmark or post card in the other books.

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Joe then opened up to questions.

Brian Shaer: Is it better to create a website for the author or the book.
Joe suggested an author website was better, for authors who plan to write more than one book. If your name is too common or unusual, use a generic name, such as “thriller-guy.com,” but create your own brand, rather than the book’s brand.

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Jo Avent asked about the difference between an agent and a publicist.

Joe explained that an agent deals with your legal contract with a publisher, and how much you get paid and when, and who owns which rights and for how long.  A publicist is only about marketing your work. An agent does not do any promotion, and he said you wouldn’t want them to, because they don’t have the contacts or expertise and  won’t do a good job.

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There were several other questions, and answers of course. 

 

If only you'd been there!