18 | The Writer • March 2020
or conducting good, old-fashioned Google
research. Reach out to individual journalists or
editors with tailored pitches letting them know
why this is a fit for their particular audience.
Again, remember that follow-up!
16
Consider a virtual book tour.
Virtual book tours can be time-intensive to
organize but can really move the needle in expo-
sure and buzz. The idea behind a VBT is to build
a groundswell of digital chatter about your book
the week of publication. Reach out to book blog-
gers, bookstagrammers (book influencers on Ins-
tagram), podcasters, people who review books on
Amazon and Goodreads, and influencers who
don’t charge for posts. Get them excited about
your book, ask if they’d consider covering or
reviewing your book, and assure them you’ll pro-
vide them with all the assets they’ll need. See if
they’ll commit to posting about your book on a
particular day of your launch week.
17
Hire a quality media trainer.
Why hire a media trainer – that is, an
expert who can coach you on working with the
press – to help you sell your story? As a wise ad
man who was the first national bestselling author
I ever worked with would say, “You can’t read the
label from inside the bottle.” This is especially
true when it comes to knowing just the right
things to say and how to say them during a media
interview. Hiring a quality media trainer for a
half-day or one-day workshop based on your
project can do wonders in preparing you to inter-
act with the media. You should walk away with
not only solid talking points and soundbites but
also the confidence to slay any and all interviews.
18
Prepare for interviews.
Quite a lot goes into being ready for media
opportunities that come your way. Practice what
your media trainer has taught you (there’s no
shame in talking to yourself in the mirror or
interviewing yourself in the car during your
commute). Also, remember to clear your calen-
dar to make yourself available for interviews.
Aim for maximum flexibility. New authors have
to work around the journalist’s schedule, not the
other way around. Know that the time surround-
ing your book launch will be a crucial one in
your publishing career, and prepare your calen-
dar accordingly.
19
Write articles on your book’s subject.
One of the back-door approaches in today’s
media landscape is to offer written content as an
expert. Many media organizations have cut back
and trimmed down staff to the point that your will-
ingness to provide content can make or break your
chance of getting in the door for that exposure. Fig-
ure out a handful of appropriate topics and write to
those timely aspects. If you have two to three short
articles crafted (think 500-700 words) in advance,
you can easily add on if needed or tweak the contri-
bution for what’s needed for the publication.20
Maintain your digital relevancy and build
on your brand.
Even in the hurricane of book promotion, you
must stay up to date with your website and social
posts so your message doesn’t “die on the vine.”
You’ve spent so much time and effort to get to
this point: Don’t lose that momentum now. Even
when the prime promotion period has passed,
you should continue to extend and build your
brand for the next big thing. You might be devel-
oping a speaking career, pitching articles, serving
as an expert on broadcast outlets, or capitalizing
on the seasonality/awareness months that are
most relevant for your brand. You’ll need to be
constantly developing ongoing social media con-
tent to consistently engage and grow your audi-
ence. The grind never stops; social media posts,
guest posts, articles, following influencers, plug-
ging into new and growing groups on Facebook,
LinkedIn, or other online communities – it all
matters. What are other projects to build off your
first or most recent book? Using momentum and
contacts for the next project is key. Keep up with
the news and respond to timely happenings and
news stories that you can comment on.Like Barbara Walters, one of our favorite inter-
viewers, says, “This is 20/20.” Build your 20/
focus for a strong game plan, be flexible, and be
tenacious!Marika Flatt has been a literary publicist since 1997 and
launched PR by the Book in 2002 to combine her love of
books and media. Since then, the work of a book publicist
has evolved from faxing press releases to getting a journal-
ist’s attention through a tweet. The firm’s clients have
spanned international bestsellers to debut authors. Their
exciting launch in 2020 is the Author to Influencer Accelera-
tor which you can learn more about at prbythebook.com.