A LENDER NOR A BORROWER BE....

A SHORT WHILE AGO, I was having dinner with some friends, non-writers, who I care for and who care about me. One of them asked how sales for The Tattooed Witch and The Tattooed Seer were going. They had read the first book and were looking forward to reading the second. In jest, I replied, "Oh, the books are selling like hot-cakes."

"Really?" they asked.

"No, not really," I said. "I wish." I went on to explain that because my publisher was a small Canadian press (and an excellent one, I might add - this post is no criticism of Five Rivers), it also meant that I had to rely on mostly my own efforts to promote the books and that sales were steady but slow. Small presses do not have the cash flow to spend on promotion that the larger publishers do. Plus, there are many books out there from which readers can choose.

My friends nodded in sympathy, and then one of them offered to 'lend' my book to the other. They were happy to share the book with each other, as if they were doing me a favour. I sat there and said nothing. I had just finished talking about slow sales, and instead of thinking of buying a copy of my latest novel, my one friend promised the other to lend her the book. They thought they were giving me their support.

I was annoyed. I still am, whenever this occurs. There is an underlying belief out there that books are free, that readers pay the writer a compliment by reading their work. I suppose it's because we forget that other forms of entertainment, like television, seem to be free even though we pay for them via cable, Netflix, or whatever. Readers can finish a book in two days. They don't realize the amount of work that goes into creating a novel - years, before a writer may be technically good enough to produce a solid piece of work.

Nobody owes me a living, and nobody asked me to devote my life to writing. I have been fortunate enough to do that, blessed with the talent and tenacity to earn some acclaim and publishing success. But devoting my life to a creative effort has also meant I've lived with less financial security than I like. Many artists do. It's what we give up to be who we are. Few of us reach those heady heights where we earn six figure salaries. If not for my spouse who supports me, I would be a member of  'the artistic poor', as many other writers, musicians, painters, dancers, and actors are.

For those who think I complain of nothing, let me ask you this: would you expect a surgeon to perform surgery on you without pay? Or a plumber to unplug your pipes for free? If you argue that these things are necessary, that the arts do not fall under the same practical requirements, then imagine a world that provides you with no entertainment, a life without television, movies, books, or any kind of story. What a dull and uninteresting place it would be.

I am one of those who contributes to the world's imagination and colour. The reviews of my books have been excellent. Maybe it is worth paying for books, after all. The cost of a novel isn't so much, and it goes a long way to telling the author you appreciate what they do, that you recognize the importance of a bigger world than what the ordinary day-to-day offers. Yes, it's nice that readers are reading our work, but please - support the writers you know by buying their books instead of lending them or, even worse, by pirating them. After all, you'd spend the same on a novel that you might on lunch. Even less money, if you have an e-reader like a Kindle.

- Susan.

GUERRILLA MARKETING: PROMOTING YOUR BOOK WITHIN GLOBAL TECHNO-BABBLE - GUEST POST by BILLIE MILHOLLAND

THE FOLLOWING IS A GUEST POST BY BILLIE MILHOLLAND. I asked Billie to address how she promotes and markets her books, because, as well as being an entertaining and excellent writer, she is one of the most successful promoters I know. What I find especially helpful is that she manages to promote her work in an effective, non-invasive way. She tells me she's just scratched the surface as far as this topic goes. With luck, I can coax her to come back for a future post. 

IN AUGUST, AT WHEN WORDS COLLIDE IN CALGARY, a conversation about book promotion with a couple of new writers hit the inevitable stone wall of disbelief. “I have to promote my own work? I thought my publicist and my publisher did it.”

I’ve heard so many versions of that reaction; you’d think I’d have a canned response ready. I don’t seem to, because the level of shock, resentment, and foot-stomping resistance to this notion is unpredictable. Short answer (elevator response): yes, you do have to promote your own work. First of all, unless you're a celebrity or a well-known professional in a high-interest field, you won’t have a publicist early in your career. Secondly, small publishers have even smaller budgets for promotion. Even if you snag a big name publisher for your first work, you are still an unknown. Your slice of the publicity pie is ribbon thin. Long answer (evening-in-the-pub response): the promotion of your work begins at birth – your birth, not the birth of your book. Okay. Slight exaggeration designed to emphasize the long-term complexity of effective promotion of your literary work. Seth Godin recommends starting your promotion three years before your book comes out. Even if your magnum opus has all the ingredients of an international best seller, enough human beings have to read it for the word to get out.

According to UNESCO data from 2010, about 350,000 new titles are published yearly in North America. As of July, 2013, www.goodreads.com had 30 million members/readers. Faced with stats like these, many authors panic and go into scatter-shot mode. “Aaah! Gotta get to as many readers as possible in the shortest amount of time before I lose the edge.” This often translates into a litany of “Buy my book! Buy my book!” all over Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, blogs, podcasts, YouTube, and, yes, even e-mail. 

Harnessing social media to call attention to your new publication is essential, but using it as a bullhorn will only annoy people. We are all subject to sensory over-load from social media, and consequently have developed tune-out responses to 'buy-this-look-at-me' noise.The key directive to remember when using social media to get people to read your book? Be Authentic. Notice I said, ‘read’ your book, not ‘buy’ your book. When you’re first published, friends, family, and colleagues will buy your new book, but not all of them will read it. From this early built-in fan base, you need to spread out and find your real readers, strangers – folks who want to read what you write. No matter what combination of social media you choose to use, it still comes down to the old adage – one reader at a time. Social media is built through relationships. Building real relationships is the only sustainable way to increase readership.

Your job is to get your work in the hands of as many people as you can. Traditional marketing of anything is costly. It requires advertising, press releases, and an endless variety of selling techniques. It is essentially an arm’s length process. Guerrilla marketing, on the other hand, is up close and personal. It’s where you include people you’ve met at conferences, sports events, music festivals, online. Not people you've just exchanged business cards with, people you've had a conversation with, shared something that was not your-book related. Guerrilla marketing is where you do the unexpected, create surprises, encourage people to have fun. 

One of the best and most recent examples of guerrilla marketing that I’ve witnessed was a campaign by an Edmonton writer who wanted to go into outer space. Hal Friesen wasn’t marketing a book, but everything he did could be done by an enterprising writer trying to draw attention to an upcoming book. It’s worth your time becoming his friend and scrolling back past September 10, 2013 on his Facebook page to study his 167 days in a space suit. Or, visit his website to get the shortened version of his incredible marketing journey. Of course, now that he has a book to market, he is well on his way toward establishing relationships with a broad spectrum of potential readers.

Guerrilla marketing includes finding ways to cross-promote with other writers. Find out who else in your community has had something published about the same time as your publication. Invite them to share a panel discussion with you at a library event, share a table at a seasonal community event, exchange blog posts. 

Book launch promotion is often under-exploited. At a traditional book launch, a writer stands like a preacher before an audience trapped in chairs. The mood is church-solemn; the writer drones on, reading long passages from the work in question. There are many ways to defeat this tradition. Turn your launch from a class lecture to a casual visit with your readers at your kitchen table or in your favourite watering hole. Create an atmosphere that encourages enjoyment for the passage(s) you plan to read. 

o   If the story is set in real geography, show photos and tell a few focused anecdotes about the place(s).

o   If the story is set in an actual time period, share some interesting trivia from that era that relates directly to what happens in your story.

o   Share some of the interesting adventures you had while researching your book (people you met, unusual facts you discovered). 

·     Read briefly. If you are attached to reading a long passage, break it up and intersperse your reading with interesting trivia about your writing journey. Read slowly. Don’t race. Make sure you know how to pronounce smoothly all the words you’ve used. Keep your chin up; when you lower your head, sound pools at your feet instead of flowing out into your audience. Practice enunciating. Most of us mumble and truncate words in casual conversation. You want your words to be clear. If your audience has to strain to hear what you say, listening fatigue will make them tune you out. They will take to checking their watches instead of anticipating your next phrases. Smile. These are your friends and supporters. You don’t want them to think you’re not pleased that they’ve come out. Thank those who came out and those who helped do anything at all toward your event. Of course, this is only useful if you’ve written a compelling book, but that’s a topic for other discussions, many of which have already been explored on this blog.

ABOUT BILLIE MILHOLLAND: Promoting community events and artistic projects on a shoe string is where Billie first learned to use innovation and surprise in order to be noticed above the sensory overload of this tech-dense era. She has had success with marketing both fiction and non-fiction over the last 20 years. Most recently, she is promoting The Puzzle Box (Aug 2013), a collaborative novel that contains her novella Autumn Unbound – an unravelling of what happens to Pandora after she was blamed for opening Zeus’s forbidden box, and The Urban Green Man (Aug 2013), a short story anthology containing her story, Green Man, She Restless – a near-future revelation of what happens to a scientist after she's imprisoned by a megalithic GMO conglomerate.

PUBLICISTS, PART THREE: WHAT 'EXACTLY' CAN A PUBLICIST DO FOR ME, AND HOW MUCH WILL IT COST? Guest Post by Rachel Sentes

THE FOLLOWING IS PART THREE of Rachel Sentes's guest posts on publicity and promotion regarding what a publicist can do for all of us writers out there. The post that follows is the most extensive yet. Rachel has very kindly shared specific information about what she does for her clients, as well as provide us with privileged information: what she charges and what her fees are. Take it away, Rachel!

THERE ARE ALL KINDS OF PUBLICISTS that offer a variety of services, but ultimately they all want the same result: booking interviews for their client.  We are the ‘behind the scenes’ people that fill the spaces in newspapers, magazines, online blogs, television shows and news stories, book review sites and radio shows. No one in the public eye is there by accident. From start to finish, it can take hours to secure a five minute interview. I can’t speak for everyone, so I’ll speak for myself and my team about what we do on a daily basis. We:

·            Read through all the top national and international newspapers and sections (lifestyle, entertainment, books, business, sports, etc.) to find tie-ins pertaining to our client’s work 

·            Go through twitter feeds/Facebook sites and look for additional news and websites that can be opportunities for bookings. We connect with media people, writers and publishers online who may know of opportunities.

·            Read reporter/producer requests from HARO (Help a Reporter Out), Pitch Rate, Pitching Notes, Media Bistro.com, Publishers Lunch, Deadline Hollywood, Quill & Quire, Broadcaster magazine, and other resources for direct pitches

·           Research media contacts for specific industries and compile and add to media lists. We enter data into mail-out systems for press releases

·            Go through e-mails, prioritize to-do lists for immediate and ongoing media bookings

·            Answer e-mails from new prospects and set up phone meetings

·            Delegate research and pitching tasks to subcontractors

·            Write content and design media kits for clients

·            Troubleshoot on author websites and in social media, post new book signings and events online

·            Research and write articles/news releases/psa’s/one-on-one pitches/speaker’s kits/media kits/media invitations and review requests

·            Pitch all written material to media contacts via email. We call or tweet other media contacts

·            Contact publishers for pitches for new books and updates on the status of proposals

·            Draft book proposals, query letters, and outlines with sample chapters for our clients

·            Accompany clients to interviews at news studios

·            Provide media coaching for those who are inexperienced before the camera

·            Write television show proposals which we pitch to development companies

·            Write and edit news releases which are sent to our clients for approval, make the suggested changes, then upload on distribution sites for release

·            Follow up on good leads for news releases. Phone and email to secure bookings.

·            Ghostwrite blogs and upload them online

·            Provide book signing and promotional advice to clients, send ‘What to Wear on Television’ tip sheets

·            Set up blog tours for new books and promote them online

·            Troubleshoot booking issues, reschedule on behalf of the media or the client and find new dates

·            Find and research placement for an op-ed that clients write (This is a great way to add to a campaign.)

·            Make judgment calls about having clients on the air. If the media is nervous about an untried guest, it’s my job to either get the client ready, or have them trained so they might be rebooked on the show. This is a part of the ‘behind the scenes’ work that a lot of people don't know about. I’ve had to turn down key spots for clients because they simply weren’t ready to be on a big show. This ensures that the client's and our business reputation stays intact.

·            Answer and troubleshoot Amazon marketing issues, follow-up on outstanding reviews

·            Read and assess manuscripts/books/client proposals for possible publicity angles

And there you have it. Publicity isn’t just about making calls and booking media. It’s a whole lot more. When someone asks me about their ‘Return on Investment’ and what I’ve been doing all day, I show them this list. Keep in mind that the two minute clip you see of a puppy at the end of a television show might have taken two weeks to set up.

In the business of writing you need to budget for everything. Even if you plan on doing your own publicity, you still have to budget your time in order to implement those plans.  

Before hiring a publicist, be sure you know exactly what you want. If all you need is someone to help you refine your pitch so you can approach the media—say that. If you want your publicist to do all the work—tell them that as well. Every publicist should have a package that will fit your needs, but you need to determine what those are, first.

A publicity business with a broader set of goals has a bigger reach, so while gal-friday publicity specializes in books, we also work with businesses like alpaca farms, sleep consultants, actors, and sports people. If you choose a publicity firm that only caters to one aspect of your industry, you could limit your opportunities.

Fees: Every firm and freelancer has their own fee schedule. Some charge for consultations and some don’t. Consultations can range from free to $150.00 for a half hour or hour session. Research/Google the team names on the company website to see how active they are online. Do you see news releases? Articles? Check and see what comes up. People who give free consultations can be just as good as those who charge. Also, check to see if they charge a reading fee for going through your manuscript. I offer a free assessment because I want to be 100% sure it’s something that’s a good fit for me and my team, but not everyone works this way. Be sure to ask if they have a fee.

When it comes to rates for publicity, some publicists will have levels for monthly retainers or publicity packages, but all will require a deposit of some kind. Per placement publicity firms collect a fee only if they get a placement. This may sound like a great way to go, but if they are doing that, you can be sure that there is absolutely NO strategy involved in their campaign. There is no consistency to who or where they pitch, and they will limit their time on your campaign if they don’t get any bites. It’s a start and stop method, which isn’t what publicity is about.

Most publicists recommend a minimum time commitment. I recommend three months as a minimum investment. I can usually get publicity and a feel for what the industry is looking for in that amount of time. Many of my clients are long-standing, because they keep writing and producing new books and products. Many clients commit to six to twelve months. Look for contracts that you can negotiate if you aren’t sure what you have available for a budget. Be sure you can afford it.

I generally don’t post my fee structure online because I want prospects to talk to me directly, but I would like to educate people on the variety, so my hourly rate starts at $95.00/hour. Wow! I know that sounds like a lot, but it isn’t, really. That money is divided to cover my freelance sub-contractors who work on all of our projects, and it covers overhead expenses, database maintenance and distribution lists. When all is said and done I’m actually only giving myself a salary of $22.00/hour.

You will find that most PR companies charge between $65.00- $150.00/hour. Big time PR agencies will charge higher for large companies (Fortune 500 publicity companies charge between $3,000- 10,000/month)

At the time of this writing I offer several retainer packages. Each one is customized to meet the goals the client requests. Package A is five hours for $495.00: this can include writing and researching news releases, distribution, follow ups for media bookings, targeted media lists with pitches, tweet and phone campaigns, real tie publicity, tie- ins for headlines, and author platform development with publicity on local and national levels. Our retainer packages go up from there in five hour increments, up to 35 hours a month ( large businesses use that level) but I am open to negotiate for smaller projects like news release distribution and/or publishing consultations  (by the hour).

If you are seriously thinking about hiring a publicist there are a couple of things you should be wary of:

Don’t ask for the moon. Be realistic. We’ll ask you for a wish list but that doesn’t mean we can get everything you want. If you published with Createspace or on your own, chances are you won’t be on the cover of Time anytime soon. If a publicist promises you that, be wary. As for me, I have booking contacts with large U.S shows. (I can pitch to Ellen, but that doesn’t mean she’ll choose your story).

In this industry you need to have the flexibility to be available for interviews. Publicity isn’t easy to get.  Are you able to drop everything to talk to a major outlet? Not everyone can. If you say you’re available, you need to mean it. Reputations are on the line. Rescheduling and canceling interviews cost time and money is better spent elsewhere. Don’t hire a publicist if you aren’t available!

Research is key to finding the right publicist for your project. You’ve invested time and effort in your book. Make sure you’re getting the best marketing/advertising/publicity strategy in place. And finally, remember, when you hire a publicist you can spend more time doing what you do best—writing that next book. Leave her to worry about bookings. 

(Thanks, Rachel, for a very informative and interesting post! And if those of you out there are interested in getting a tailor-made quote from Rachel regarding her services and learning what she can specifically do for you, contact her at gal-friday publicity.) 

Rachel's Bio: Rachel Sentes is a professional writer and full-time publicist/CEO of gal-friday publicity, based in Vancouver, B.C. Her clients include actors, sports figures, publishers, authors, top tier businesses and dog rescue associations. She specializes in building publicity platforms and garnering media bookings for authors,helping them negotiate their way through the ever-changing maze of the publishing world. Rachel has booked clients on CNN, CTV National, BNN, The Seattle Times, Global, Shaw, City TV, The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, NewsTalk 1010, TSN, Bloomberg Radio and The Vancouver Sun, to name a few. 

Next Post: Guest Interview with Adria Laycraft and Janice Blaine, co-editors or The Urban Green Man anthology.

Stay tuned!

PUBLICISTS, PART TWO: CAN A WRITER WORK WITH TWO PUBLICISTS AT THE SAME TIME? Guest Post by Rachel Sentes

THIS GUEST POST IS PART TWO of Rachel Sentes's posts on publicity and what publicists can do for an author. Can a writer work with two publicists at the same time? I can see how this might be an issue if a publisher dedicates one or more of their staff to help the writer publicize their book, or if the writer is working with a publisher and an outside agent, or if the writer is utilizing two different publicists to share the promotional workload. This is what Rachel has to say about it:

Can you work with two publicists at a time? For the most part, yes. But each publicist must be very clear in defining their role and the client's role in the booking process. I’ve worked alongside all kinds of publicists, and working in tandem can be very beneficial. We aren’t in competition, we collaborate to get our client results. And I must admit, working with another can spur you on to see how fast you can garner media for your client. Both publicists will share their lists so that all bases are covered. If you plan to do this, get your publicists together as soon as possible so they can establish ground rules as to who is doing what. 

The best way to choose a publicist is to do your research to see what kinds of books they represent, then to contact them to see if they will answer whatever questions you might have. Ask for referrals and spend some time determining if they are a good fit. 

What’s in it for me? This will be one of the first questions a member of the media will ask you or your publicist(s) when determining if they want to give you air time for an interview. Never forget: their job is to garner ratings for their station and increase readership for their newspaper - not to help you. They'll want to know if what you're offering will inspire, entertain, or help their audience. They aren’t interested in how long it took you to write your book, or why you wrote it. Instead, they'll want to know how your book connects to current trends, headlines, or newsworthy topics. No one (except for breaking news items) is interviewed on television by accident. Interviewees are there as a result of someone behind the scenes making countless phone calls and e-mail pitches to convince producers and editors that their client is the best fit for what they need. That’s what good publicists do.

The media is important because they provide a direct line to an audience who will purchase your book and value the message you are offering. A publicist will take apart your book to see what trends (however soft they may seem) can be turned into opportunities to garner interviews and reviews. She will look for strengths in themes and plot, but more importantly, she'll look for that common denominator with which the public can identify. Having a publicist is beneficial because she won't have the same personal connection with your book as you do. She can distance herself from the material. This is similar to self-editing. Anyone can edit their book, but the really well-written ones benefit from a professional editor who isn't close to the material. 

While publicists might identify with the ideas and experiences and qualities of a book, (and it’s important for them to like your book and your writing), overall, they are only thinking about why the content matters to others. And this may end up becoming a very different angle or focus than what the author thinks it is. It’s this objectivity that makes hiring publicists so valuable. For example, I recently started working on a book of fiction that features a young twenty-two year old protagonist in the oil and gas industry who talks about that lifestyle and its pitfalls, plus what solutions might address those issues.The most obvious angle was one that appealed to young men (and others) in the oil and gas industry. This was a good angle. But the actual hook that interested the media was the appeal the book would have for parents with offspring in the industry who aren't aware of its darker side when looking for a decent job. This was a market that didn’t occur to the author, but it was the one that garnered interest. The book is currently being targeted to parents. Fear and desire are the two top emotions that garner interviews.

To wrap this post, if you're doing your own publicity, or hiring others to help you, always think of what’s in it for the media and their target audience. If you do, you’ll get better results.

Rachel's Bio: Rachel Sentes is a professional writer and full-time publicist/CEO of gal-friday publicity, based in Vancouver, B.C. Her clients include actors, sports figures, publishers, authors, top tier businesses and dog rescue associations. She specializes in building publicity platforms and garnering media bookings for authors,helping them negotiate their way through the ever-changing maze of the publishing world. Rachel has booked clients on CNN, CTV National, BNN, The Seattle Times, Global, Shaw, City TV, The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, NewsTalk 1010, TSN, Bloomberg Radio and The Vancouver Sun, to name a few. 

(Thanks again, Rachel!)

Next Post: Publicists, Part Three:What 'Exactly' Can a Publicist Do For Me, and How Much Will It Cost?

Stay tuned.

DO I NEED A PUBLICIST, AND IF SO, WHAT KIND?

THE FOLLOWING IS A GUEST POST (the first of three parts) by Rachel Sentes, publicist with gal-friday publicity. I've always wondered what a publicist might do for me, so I asked her to give us an idea of the types of publicists out there. Here' s what she has to say:

There are lots of publicists out there and several kinds that can help you. They are: 

1. Freelance
2. In-house
3. Agencies or Firms, or
4. Guaranteed Placements

A Freelance Publicist is usually an individual who works with a few other freelance writers or sub-contractors to contact media for self-published and traditionally published books and e-books.  

An In-house Publicist is a publicist that works inside a traditional publishing firm or a self-publishing company and is hired by the publisher to work on the book. In the case of a self-publishing house, they are usually part of a pre-paid package. If you are paying for a publicist as part of your publishing contract, then you are not with a traditional publishing house (and that’s a whole other post!) 

A freelance publicist is different than an in-house publicist in that a freelancer can choose what books they want to work on, and for how long. And that works well since publicity is an organic and evolving process. Many In-house publicists are given very little choice as to which books they want to work on, and they are usually done in three months, sometimes shorter depending on what other books are being pushed.  Which is too bad because some books take a little longer to have the media warm up to them, and so just when things start to go for them, they lose their support.

An Agency or Firm will have twenty or more publicists working on your book and often you will have two or three different people doing the bookings for you. These are the companies that so many marketing/publicity books (and writers) talk about when they say that you’ll be shelling out thousands of dollars for a publicist. And that might well be, as they tend to charge more than freelancers because they may have a few more resources on hand to help you. In my research and experience, freelancers can often land the same type of media that agencies can. A downside to agencies for some people is that they rarely read the books before signing you up, which can certainly affect the type of publicity you receive. However, since they have so many people working for them, their database can be substantially bigger than freelancers. 

The final kind, is mix of Publicist/Advertiser. Now I haven’t had a lot of direct interactions with many of them, but a few of my clients have, and while they did get placements, many of them weren’t a great fit for their book. And that’s generally because they have cultivated specific relationships with set types of media, that they know will do an article or interview with them. It’s almost like direct marketing with built in success. Now that might just be what you are looking for, so it’s worthwhile to research them. But be aware that your socially conscious environmental book might not fit the right wing business show that they end up booking you on. They do say that any publicity is good publicity, but if it’s not going to reach your audience it’s probably not a good fit. 

Rachel's Bio: Rachel Sentes is a professional writer and full-time publicist/CEO of gal-friday publicity, based in Vancouver, B.C. Her clients include actors, sports figures, publishers, authors, top tier businesses and dog rescue associations. She specializes in building publicity platforms and garnering media bookings for authors, helping them negotiate their way through the ever-changing maze of the publishing world. Rachel has booked clients on CNN, CTV National, BNN, The Seattle Times, Global, Shaw, City TV, The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, NewsTalk 1010, TSN, Bloomberg Radio and The Vancouver Sun, to name a few. 

(Thanks, Rachel!)

Next Post: Publicists, Part Two: Can You Work With Two Publicists at a Time? by Rachel Sentes.

Stay tuned.