Yes, to all of this! I covered books for a media company for six years and would receive between 3 and 12 galleys A DAY, nearly every day of the week - and that's not including e-galleys, which seem to be infinite. Literally thousands of books a year. Publishers send awesome pitches, there are so many good books out there! AND... many times those books were covered months after they came out (or, yes, not at all) because that's just what was possible. Occasionally authors might email, wondering why their book hadn't been covered, or if it still might be, and I have so much compassion for that labor of love. It's hard when the only honest answer, really, usually, is: because it's literally 45 books deep on my desk and that's just the order I happened to open the mail that week. I don't know that there's really a way to solve for that - at least not at the media or "influencer" level. (Hopefully I remember all this if/when it's my own book being publicized one day!) Thanks for always sharing an illuminating and thoughtful perspective, Kate!
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
How true. Back in the pre-social media days when I was published by HarperCollins and Orion I could only wonder what arcane processes took place within a publisher's marketing department. Even then, however, a book would only receive its allocated marketing support time. Like many fiction authors that embraced self-publishing alongside (sometimes) a conventional publishing contract, the sheer amount of stuff you have become familiar with is eye watering: from Facebook, Amazon, Bookbub advertising, hustling for reviews, preparing ARCs, building a mailing list, checking out book promotion sites, Instagram and now TikTok/Booktok, making promo videos, designing covers – I'm out of breath already. Oh yes, and then working on the next thriller, YA fantasy or crime novel.
Advice time: I am new to Substack and unsure if my newsletter works or if my page will interest other writers and, especially, readers. Any comments you would like to make would be very welcome.
Thanks for this Kate! Around the end of the year I'll have printed 300 ltd edition hardcover books for my first ever small press release, and my very first experiences publishing / marketing.
I'd love any advice -- or any good crash courses elsewhere -- on how to make books visible as a small publisher (ie, it's me and the designers I contract). Because the book I'm publishing is all other people's work I feel a real imperative to make it as visible as possible.
Yes, to all of this! I covered books for a media company for six years and would receive between 3 and 12 galleys A DAY, nearly every day of the week - and that's not including e-galleys, which seem to be infinite. Literally thousands of books a year. Publishers send awesome pitches, there are so many good books out there! AND... many times those books were covered months after they came out (or, yes, not at all) because that's just what was possible. Occasionally authors might email, wondering why their book hadn't been covered, or if it still might be, and I have so much compassion for that labor of love. It's hard when the only honest answer, really, usually, is: because it's literally 45 books deep on my desk and that's just the order I happened to open the mail that week. I don't know that there's really a way to solve for that - at least not at the media or "influencer" level. (Hopefully I remember all this if/when it's my own book being publicized one day!) Thanks for always sharing an illuminating and thoughtful perspective, Kate!
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
Well said. The lack of time and money in the publisher's budget to do everything one might hope or dream could be done to market your book does not mean there is no marketing going on. I'm a literary agent and I see publishers marketing teams work very hard at the tasks you describe.
My beef is more with a convenient tendency for publishers not to clarity to authors, at the outset, how uncertain any sales impact will be. They also need be clear about what the author themselves ought to do, if they are able. Book success is such a long shot. Authors need understand that. When that is clear then they stop blaming the publishers marketing team for lack of effort.
I can see a lot of useful information. Hope to see next post from you.
https://fivenightsatfreddys.onl
How true. Back in the pre-social media days when I was published by HarperCollins and Orion I could only wonder what arcane processes took place within a publisher's marketing department. Even then, however, a book would only receive its allocated marketing support time. Like many fiction authors that embraced self-publishing alongside (sometimes) a conventional publishing contract, the sheer amount of stuff you have become familiar with is eye watering: from Facebook, Amazon, Bookbub advertising, hustling for reviews, preparing ARCs, building a mailing list, checking out book promotion sites, Instagram and now TikTok/Booktok, making promo videos, designing covers – I'm out of breath already. Oh yes, and then working on the next thriller, YA fantasy or crime novel.
Advice time: I am new to Substack and unsure if my newsletter works or if my page will interest other writers and, especially, readers. Any comments you would like to make would be very welcome.
Thanks for this Kate! Around the end of the year I'll have printed 300 ltd edition hardcover books for my first ever small press release, and my very first experiences publishing / marketing.
I'd love any advice -- or any good crash courses elsewhere -- on how to make books visible as a small publisher (ie, it's me and the designers I contract). Because the book I'm publishing is all other people's work I feel a real imperative to make it as visible as possible.
Maybe this will help from Jane Friedman! https://www.janefriedman.com/category/marketing-promotion/. It really depends on what kind of book it is.