Category Archives: Marketing - Page 10

Lissa Warren – Get your book on the store’s front table

On April 8th, 2009 Irene Watson and Victor R. Volkman spoke with author and publishing expert Lissa Warren on how to get your book into the sweet spot on those tables in the front of the bookstore. Lissa Warren has worked at several Boston publishing houses including David R. Godine, Houghton Mifflin, and Perseus Publishing, and is currently Vice President, Senior Director of Publicity and Acquiring Editor at Da Capo Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Specifically, we were seeking answers to the following questions:

  • Who chooses which books go on a store’s front table?
  • What can authors do to help get their books on the front table at a chain bookstore?
  • What are some of the different kinds of table space available at a chain bookstore?
  • What can authors do to help get their books on a front table at an independent bookstore?
  • What kind of media is likely to make a bookstore sit up and take notice?
  • Does it help if you stop by bookstores and autograph copies?
  • What about readings in bookstores—do you get better table space if you do them
Lissa Warren
The author of The Savvy Author’s Guide to Book Publicity, she has spoken about publishing for the Virginia Festival of the Book, Lesley University , Publishers Marketing Association, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, Publishers Association of the South, BookBuilders of Boston, ForeWord magazine, Grub Street, the New Hampshire Writers’ Project, and the Adirondack Writer’s Conference, among others. Since 2003 she has been an Adjunct Professor at Emerson College —in their Writing, Literature, and Publishing program—and she also teaches in Boston University ‘s publishing certificate program. She serves on the advisory board to the MFA writing program at Southern New Hampshire University.Ms. Warren holds a B.S. in English Education from Miami University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Bennington College . Her poetry has appeared in Quarterly West, Oxford Magazine, Black Warrior Re
view
, and Verse, and she’s a poetry editor for the literary magazine Post Road .

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Francine Silverman – Talk Radio Wants You!

Imagine being able to sit down with a coffee and discuss with hundreds of radio hosts what their shows are about and what kind of guests they’d like to book. You can do just that with Francine Silverman’s new book Talk Radio Wants You: An Intimate Guide to 700 Shows and How to Get Invited.  I have paid $300 or more for talkradio show databases that had far less information than Francine presents in her highly-competivitely priced book.  Broken down into top-level categories, you can browse for shows in your genre, including Politics, Health & Fitness, Food, Sports, Self-Help, Women’s issues, and even Authors.  I would expect most people can find a dozen hot prospects for making their pitch in under half-an-hour, that is if you can stop yourself from endlessly browsing the fascinating entries!  Francine doesn’t stop with AM/FM, also incl
uded are Satellite radio and Podcasts, which can reach thousands of interested listeners you would never get from terrestrial radio.   Each entry includes critical info such as desired guests, host bio, and full contact info so you can tailor your pitch perfectly I can’t recommend this book strongly enough for any author who wants to get into this high-profile, low-cost method of marketing. Only a couple of downsides to mention:  if you’re looking for Gay & Lesbian, Military/Veteran, or Science-Fiction oriented shows you will not find enough listings to make it worthwhile.  Also, I feel like the “What is your guest from hell?” entries were a bit repetitive.  Everyone knows that hosts want an articulate, on-time, and well-spoken guest. If I know Francine, she will amend these in future editions. 

2009 Book Marketing Roundtable – Part II

On March 30th, 2009 we convened the 2009 Book Marketing Roundtable to talk about industry “best practices” with authors, marketing experts, and publishers Irene Watson of Reader Views, Tyler Tichelaar of Superior Book Promotions and Victor R. Volkman of Loving Healing Press, Inc. This is a free-for-all discussion on many critical book marketing aspects including: social networking, public events, book videos, professional appearances, co-op flyer mailouts, websites for authors, and marketing mistakes. Don’t forget to listen to Part I of our podcast too!
Irene Watson is author of The Sitting Swing: Finding the Wisdom to Know the Difference, the proprietor of Reader Views Inc., Blogging Authors dot com, Inside Scoop Live, and many other publicity and marketing related activities. Tyler Tichelaar is the owner of Marquette Fiction and author of the Marquette Trilogy, a saga of 150 years on the shores of Lake Superior, and is the proprietor of Superior Book Promotions, a full-service literary and editorial consulting firm. Victor R. Volkman is the publisher behind Loving Healing Press Inc. and Modern History Press and publishes a full line of books on trauma recovery, personal growth, and coping with disabilities as well as the editor of numerous anthologies including More Than A Memory: Reflections of Viet Nam

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Sites mentioned on today’s show (for your clicking pleasure)

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2009 Book Marketing Roundtable – Part I

On March 16th, 2009 we convened the 2009 Book Marketing Roundtable to talk about industry “best practices” with authors, marketing experts, and publishers Irene Watson of Reader Views, Tyler Tichelaar of Superior Book Promotions and Victor R. Volkman of Loving Healing Press, Inc. This is a free-for-all discussion on many critical book marketing aspects including: Amazon launches, online author readings and podcasts, editing and proofing, awards programs, book giveaways, author and publisher associations, blog book tours
Irene Watson is author of The Sitting Swing: Finding the Wisdom to Know the Difference, the proprietor of Reader Views Inc., Blogging Authors dot com, Inside Scoop Live, and many other publicity and marketing related activities. Tyler Tichelaar is the owner of Marquette Fiction and author of the Marquette Trilogy, a saga of 150 years on the shores of Lake Superior, and is the proprietor of Superior Book Promotions, a full-service literary and editorial consulting firm. Victor R. Volkman is the publisher behind Loving Healing Press Inc. and Modern History Press and publishes a full line of books on trauma recovery, personal growth, and coping with disabilities as well as the editor of numerous anthologies including More Than A Memory: Reflections of Viet Nam a>

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Sites mentioned on today’s show (for your clicking pleasure)

  • podiobooks.com
  • plantronics headset (at right)
  • Audacity (free audio editor)
  • Goldwave (shareware audio editor)
  • LibraryThing
  • Asian American Literary Awards
  • The Vibrational Universe (Ken MacLean)
  • MeetUp.com
  • ParentReviewers.com
  • Small Publishers and Authors Network (SPAN)
  • Independent Book Publishers and AUthors (IBPA)
  • Upper Peninsula Publishers and Authors Association (UPPAA)
  • Motown Writer’s Network
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