This is the third part in a blog series, in which Jane Rawson and I share our experience of what happens just before, during and after your book is released.
In case you missed them: Part 1 was on getting blurbs and part 2 was on book launches.
Publicity
An offer to an author from a publishing house consists of two key elements: first, the advance on royalties they’re prepared to pay you, and second, their marketing plan. It is easy to focus on the money, but the marketing and publicity is arguably just as—if not more—important.
In theory, pre-release publicity begets buzz which begets larger orders from booksellers which begets better visibility in bookshops which begets (hopefully) more sales which begets more orders etc. Getting influential people with large audiences to talk about your book is the ultimate goal but every little bit helps so don’t underestimate small niche platforms for generating reader interest.
The post covers:
- Who’s responsible for what (you/your publisher)
- What you can expect from small independent publishers vs big six publishers
- The pros and cons of hiring a publicist
- Radio, TV, podcasts & online publicity
- Reviews
Thanks for this Annabel and Jane. Marketing and visibility are important in such a busy world of new books.
Yep. Sometimes I kind of hate how important they are. I slightly yearn for the old days in which that was the publisher’s job.