Publicity and Promotion Issues with Free Books

[gali]

Smart move! Wait for her answer before deciding either way.

[rssllue]

Agreed!

[moderntimes]

You are right to be peeved and it was very wrong of her to act that way. Contact her again after a few days and ask about it. Perhaps you can write a letter to the newspaper and complain about her? People who get free books for review should do the decent thing and review it! I often get free books for review and always deliver and can't understand people who do otherwise.

Writing a "letter to the editor" would be useless. Instead, a letter, an actual printed letter, snailmail, to her supervisor, being the Special Features editor or whomever -- check the newspaper listings. And don't exactly "complain" but simply ask in the nicest way if there would be a better way to submit your locally-authored book for possible review. In other words, "pretend" not to be irritated but write a clever letter that makes you 100% in the right and you're just a starving author who's looking for a crumb of handouts from the wealthy newspaper.

I know the newspaper business, having worked for a major daily. The "Special Features" section -- "About Town" column, movie & book reviews, that sort of Sunday supplement stuff, is held in low esteem by the "real" reporters who write about shootings and fires and mayors in hot water. There are 3 groups of staff on any standard major daily: "real" news, sports, and "other". Sports has its own dynasty within and it's like a medieval fiefdom there. No ordinary mortals allowed. The "real" news -- local, state, national -- is also imperious but is more egalitarian and less dynastic. And the "Sunday supplement" crowd are the hangers-on (in the estimate of the "real" news staff). They're lowball. And therefore the book reviewer is sort of come-and-go and very prone to personal whims with very little oversight. They and other writers in this area have their own little private "cuddle group" and it's not very "fair" in how they do things.

So write your letter to the supervisor (senior editor of the supplement staff) as a gentle inquiry about "did I go wrong in submitting my own book?" (even though you did not and were even invited to send the book).

Remember, you don't want to PO the reviewer and therefore obtain a bad review out of spite. And realize that some of these reviewers can be pretty snippy.

-- 07 Sep 2015, 11:08 --

I agree with Gali that it's clear that the book was sent for review purposes and not as a gift. However, there was no stated commitment on the newspaper reviewer's part that the book would receive a review. It seems more along the lines of "she'll take a look at it." The newspaper reserves the right to decide which books to review. If you send a complaint, I have a feeling it won't be looked upon kindly and you will lose any hope of getting a review published there in the future. At least, you have a chance of it happening if you don't complain. Although you are upset that you spent money to send her the book, I think that's part of the price of getting a book marketed. Just my opinion.

I do agree with the members who said it's common courtesy to let you know if the book is not going to be reviewed. However, it's very possible it will be reviewed and published at some point in the coming months.

Zelda, Bookowlie is giving good advice here.

A newspaper is under no obligation of course to review your book. It might be good to email or snailmail the reviewer and simply ask whether the book will be reviewed. Don't pick a fight, just ask in a "clean" way.

I said that I'd worked for a major daily. I was on the "real news" reporter staff, a "stringer" (not full salary but paid per piece or story submitted). But I know how the whole thing runs, too. Just a "friendly" letter to the reviewer might be okay, inquiring if the book will be reviewed. And it's also okay to ask, in a very non-confrontational way, why not, if the answer is "no".

-- 07 Sep 2015, 11:33 --

I'll now talk about the general issues about book submissions for review...

Unless your name is Stephen King or someone equally famous, you (and I'm using the "group you" here for all writers, not you Zelda) -- you have to work the system and game it to your advantage.

Sending it via Amazon might not have been the best route. Maybe better to send it local parcel post from you personally, including a brief note about your writing and a little about yourself. Of course the author's bio in the book itself will answer basic questions, but a personal note helps.

ALL correspondence must be via a standard business letter, printed via laserjet hopefully, then signed. No handwritten letters. The intro letter must be written from a "professional writer's" standpoint, not just a local guy or gal who wants a favor.

Thing is, and this is important -- you must elevate your writing and all correspondence concerning your writing from "I just LOVE to write!" to the level of a professional author in a professional publishing and writing world (even if you're faking it, ha ha). When you approach your writing from a professional standpoint, that attitude conveys itself to the recipient, be it an agent or publisher or a newspaper. Put on your "pro writer" hat. Because that then changes your book submission from "do me a favor pleeeeze" to an "official" request for a review. Believe me, it helps.

Now I'm about to embark upon the same sort of quest you are, Zelda, trying to gain professional reviews for my upcoming mystery novels. Getting a nice review from, for example, AHMM (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Mag) would greatly help. And of course, I'll be working for local reviews with the major news outlets here in Houston as well.

Now I'm in a slightly more advantageous position than you might be, in that my books will be professionally published by a non-subsidy house. And this publisher will be sending a few copies of the books out to the standard "trades" for review on my behalf. I will however myself be submitting my books locally as well. In each of these submissions, a cover letter will be send, either by me or the publisher.

Now my publisher is a small firm and doesn't have the punch of Simon & Schuster or similar. But they will nevertheless be sending their new mystery books out to mystery-slanted review sources (AHMM, etc) with a flier which lists all the books in that shipment and tells about each book as an intro.

But if you're doing it on your own -- as I will locally -- always assume a professional stance, a clean and clear business proposal, as it were. This helps a lot.

Of course, Zelda, you've already sent your book. So yes, follow up to the reviewer with a print, snailmail letter if possible, written in a very professional manner, asking politely for an "update". And after a certain amount of time, you may or may not decide to send a similar and very polite letter to the Features Editor, just asking for an update. If you couch your letter in a clean and professional tone, this will not get you a bad review.

And of course, if your book is not reviewed -- for whatever reason or no reason -- that's show biz.

I know you live in Lousiville, a big city. Besides the Louisville Courier-Journal, there should be quite a few small weekly or monthly newspapers there. Check them out too, and see if they review books, especially those by local authors.

I also know you write YA fiction and I've read one of your books and it's quite good -- honest. So you may also consider submitting to national magazines or other publications that publish YA fiction and also review books.

[zeldas_lullaby]

Wow, you the man with the answers once again, ModernTimes!! It's going to take me a while to respond to all of this, but I'll give it my best effort.

First off, when I sent it via Amazon, I clicked to ship it as a "gift," which enabled me to add a professional note inside the packaging. I would've shipped directly from home, but (and there's really no excuse for this) I have no copies of F12 on hand. I have copies of volume 1, but not of the four-part compilation.

"ALL correspondence must be via a standard business letter, printed via laserjet hopefully, then signed. No handwritten letters. The intro letter must be written from a "professional writer's" standpoint, not just a local guy or gal who wants a favor."

Brilliant advice, that. I'll keep it in mind.

Second, you're right, of course--BookOwlie always gives great advice. I think it comes from her being a wise owl.

Third, can you reference me these national magazines that review books? Which magazines are they? You'd think I'd know.

Third and a half, the newspaper industry here in Louisville has degraded, MT. Our main newspaper fired nearly everyone from its staff and then resorted to national content for its bulk, courtesy of USA Today. Then, in a move that no one understand but many have commented on, it devoted itself to the coverage of alcohol in Louisville. If a new distillery opens, the paper is there. If a new brewery starts to serve food as well, the paper is there. It doesn't make much sense, but... it's true. Then, they ran the most scandalous Features article that I've ever read, thus creating a national bout of bad publicity, and that was just a few weeks ago. The newspaper is a shrunken ghost of its former self.

As for smaller rags, they've disappeared from my city. The main one that still exists (at least, I think it still exists) is an about-town gossip paper, and suffice it to say, I have enemies on their staff. This is something that predates my writing career by a few decades. Also, I don't think they review books. They show photos of people about town and run Dear Abby and a movie review. The other one, that used to grace small businesses everywhere, just completely went under. Tanked.

Fourth, OK, wait for it people... I actually heard back from her today. She said my book is on her list, and she's planning an upcoming YA article. I hit reply and thanked her for the update. I seriously did not expect to hear back from her--on a holiday, no less!--so that must be the story of my life, or something: people giving me the shaft. (Is that the expression?) Much ado about nothing, I guess, which makes me feel a little ashamed now. BUT... a learning experience, for sure.

Now, if she stumbles onto this website and reads this, my goose is cooked. But what are the odds, I ask you?

[gali]

I am glad all ended well for you. Good luck!

[bookowlie]

Glad to hear the reporter/reviewer wrote you back today. It's interesting that she is planning an upcoming YA article since I originally thought the YA genre might be a stumbling block in getting a newspaper review. With all the cutbacks in the newspaper industry due to people turning to the internet for news, it might be worth your time to investigate other avenues. Maybe there are YA-targeted book blogs, YA internet-magazines, that kind of thing. Teens get their news from the internet more than paper newspapers, and blogs are all the rage. Maybe you can find YA blogs that have a huge number of followers. Just like Oprah's book club used to be wildly popular, I bet there are YA sites where teens read whatever the bloggers "tells" them to read.

As for the newspaper departments, Modern Times hit the nail on the head. Sports is king, news is the driving force, and the special interest area is off to the side. I have friends who work/have worked in the industry. A large proportion of the special interest, including book, reporters work freelance with little oversight. I wouldn't be surprised if the book reviewer works out of their home. For this reason, I doubt a letter to the person's supervisor would help at all - in fact, it would probably hurt. The personal touch Modern Times suggested could help since anything that makes you stand out among the crowd usually helps. In any event, I wouldn't ask for the book to be mailed back since would put you in an unflattering light. Just my opinion.

[RockStedy]

I totally understand your frustration. Sometimes people will promise things and not deliver within a reasonable time. Keep in mind there might be other books they are viewing at the moment and she may be taking her time in getting to yours. My advice don't sweat the small things. Granted you did spend money to get her the book however don't let it mess with your emotions. One of the worst things authors can do is give energy to people who don't need it.

[moderntimes]

Looks as if the subject took care of itself and great! Be sure to let us know about the possible review.

National mags? There are the "trades" (trade publications) like Publisher's Weekly. Publishers take out ads in this type of magazine, usually a page or half page, and small boxes listing each new book upcoming. This is the standard process with larger publishing houses. My publisher is small and has of course a smaller budget. So they may or may not take out ads and I of course can't ask them to, as they would pay -- I can't afford an ad in a national.

There are also mystery magazines like AHMM and publishers will also take out ads there, lower cost and smaller B&W ads. Again, I don't know whether my publisher will do so.

For all of these, the author of course cannot place an ad on his/her own. That just ain't done.

Now as far as magazines that do reviews, again I'm talking about AHMM or EQMM (Ellery Queen Mystery Mag) and a few others. But I'm a mystery writer and you as a YA author would need to examine the YA periodicals that are equivalent for possible venues to send your book to for review.

Regardless, always approach this in a professional manner, just as if you're a petroleum engineer looking for employment at Shell Oil. Draft a 1-page non-emotional letter that's a bit like a resume.

Insofar as Louisville, I'm sorry that the city's literary stuff is on the downslide. Here in Houston we've got one big daily, the Houston Chronicle, but we've got the Houston Press, a very fine weekly, plus quite a few smaller monthlies. I've got them on my list and the staffer to whom I would need to send my book.

Local stuff helps -- such as checking out the local non-chain bookstores, hopefully one that specializes in YA or at least has lots of YA books, and see about their stocking your book on consignment. Here in Houston we've got a thriving mystery bookstore, the 2nd largest in the USA, and there are always major authors coming thru on tour, for signings. They'll be stocking my books. So you need to check out similar local bookstores in a similar fashion.

Keep us informed about the possible review.

-- 07 Sep 2015, 13:46 --

bookowlie as usual is correct. And his recommendation for internet websites or online magazines should be looked at.

His evaluation of the special interest (Sunday Supplement) portion of a newspaper is correct too. It's definitely a low scale operation. I used to write book reviews for a major daily and was paid the vast sum of $25 for each review. Most reviewers these days do work from home and at the actual newspaper office, the sports and hard news reporters are on site and these days, many work from home.

Rock brings up the cost of your book that might we wasted. Well, I can tell you from the start that eating a few bucks happens to all of us hugely successful writers (ha ha).

Small market authors like us, whether self-published as you or professionally published as I, we all must accept that we need to absorb a certain amount of time and money to promote our books.

For example, if a local bookstore will stock your book but only on consignment, then you have to supply them with 15-20 copies which you buy at your author's discount, and then the store sells them at the list, and usually you split the profit.

So if your book list price is $19.95 and you get them for $12, the 8 buck difference means you get 4 and the bookstore gets 4.

Such local bookstore deals are typical for small market writers. Sit down with the store manager/owner and give them a free copy. They can then help promote the book if they like it. If they don't, well, sigh, that again is show biz. But we're talking about the presumption that you've written a book that's not only good but also is commercially viable -- that it will sell in a "real" store when shelved along with similar books.

How to help? Chat with the store owner and ask about your giving them a poster, generally a brief blurb about the book which emphasizes the writer's local. For example, for my private detective novels, they're based in Houston so I can double-dip and promote the book as a local-based story from a local writer. That will at least get the browser's attention.

So you can lay out a nice 8x10 or 5x7 or whatever color poster that gives the book title and a brief blurb, which the store can tape up next to where your books are shelved. You will see this sort of thing in all locally owned stores.

Poster layout for this? KISS (keep it simple stupid, ha ha) in that ALL you want to do is get the browsing person to stop and look and maybe pick up the book. That's all anyone could do until you're as successful as Stevie King.

Stick to primary colors (red, blue mostly) and use red for the major headline and blue or black for subsequent text, use mostly sanserif font and either center it or make it slightly canted toward the left (irregular or left-slanted justification catches the eye). Things like that.

[zeldas_lullaby]

Wow, you're a fount of information, ModernTimes. Thank you so much!

Hi, @Rockstedy , and welcome to the forum! Thanks for stopping by here in the writer's forum! Stick around! What you said makes a lot of sense.

BookOwlie, I've tried the YA blogger path, and it was a dead end. I submitted to a large number of them, and the two who accepted my book for review never reviewed it. (And that WAS a direct breach of contract, but oh well. I'm not going to hunt them down or anything.) HA HA--and I'm still telling you, although I don't expect you to believe me, that with my local newspaper, it's all about the bourbon. Anyways, you and MT are right that professional image is paramount. That's actually why I swore off angry emails back when I became a writer. I used to be quite mean to others, and I mean MEAN!, but I finally got a grip on that because I wanted to have a good professional reputation. Now I'm much nicer.

Gali, thank you for your positive energy! You are always so genteel and poised and unflappable. (I don't know why, but that's how I picture you.) I will keep you posted!

[rssllue]

Congratulations on hearing from her and it being good news! I am pleased that it worked out good for you. Also, if she would see this thread, then it would just give her a chance to show you grace, which is another thing that we all need more of!

[zeldas_lullaby]

Well thank you, Russell!!! That is a lovely compliment.

[rssllue]

You are most welcome!

[Ursula_Minor]

I understand why you're upset- waiting, and especially when you're not sure if what you're waiting for will ever come to pass, is always frustrating. That said, I don't actually think two months is a very long turn-around. I'm speaking generally; if "local author" refers to authors in, say, a 3500 person town, two months is outrageous. But if you're from a location of even a medium size, and can expect that local authors are probably more likely to have the time and energy to be sending out their stuff in the summer, I don't think you've been waiting especially long. I've sent away articles of 6000 words (sometimes less), and often wait 4-6 months to hear anything at all. Either way, I do hope you hear from her soon!

[zeldas_lullaby]

You make a good point, and by the way, I love your avatar!! Gothic. She did tell me when she wrote back that she's been swamped with books, which she said was a "good problem to have." (I agree with that!) Your time frames make a lot of sense. I personally tend to fear the worst!!

[moderntimes]

Zelda, it seems that your inquiry went for good at the very least. That's the best which you could expect, really. You must of course realize that per the reviewer's statement, she's swamped. I think that your request for an update was just fine and apparently there will be no negative feedback. In fact, it's possible that with your reasonable request for info, the reviewer may look at your book with a more favorable eye. We can only hope.