Writers Tricks of the Trade Issue 3 Volume 9 | Page 18

margin and publicity obtained by their au-
thors (including reviews) affects their bot-
tom line, too. They should send their author
a thank you (or a red rose!) along with en-
couragement to keep up the good work
Publishers should also market their
books. That means that even if they are too
small or underfunded to have a marketing
department, they should have a list of re-
viewers to query for reviews, a list of influ-
ential people to provide blurbs for your
cover, access to book cover designers (not
just great graphic designers) who know
what sells books, and a whole lot more. Ask
potential publishers about their marketing
process before you sign, but—even if you
feel assured after having that conversa-
tion—it’s best to assume you may be on
your own.
And here’s more: Big publishers are re-
lying on bloggers for their review process
as print journals and newspaper book sec-
tions shrink or disappear and as they begin
to understand that grassroots publicity—
reviews or otherwise—can produce a very
green crop. Bloggers, you say? Well, that’s a
resource pool you can easily plumb your-
self.
So, the marketing part of your book that
includes finding the right reviewers to read
and comment on your book will—in most
cases—be up to you and well within your
skill set after reading this book. And even
when you have the luxury of a marketing
department behind you, those authors who
know how to get reviews on their own can
keep a book alive for an infinite amount of
time after their publishers relegate their
books to a backlist or their contract expires.
F ALL 2019
Note: If it is too late to apply this infor-
mation to the process you use in choosing a
publisher, tactfully take hold and guide the
publisher you have through the review
process. There are lots of ways to do that in
this book. I love Nike’s advice to “Just do it!”
only I add “yourself” to the motto. Many
publishers are in your employ. You may be
paying them for services. At the very least,
when your book sells, it makes money for
the publisher. You don’t have to ask for
permission (though it never hurts to listen
to their reasoning before you make a deci-
sion).
-----
C AROLYN H OWARD -J OHNSON , author of This
Is the Place; Harkening: A Collection of Sto-
ries Remembered; Tracings, a chapbook of
poetry; and how to books for writers in-
cluding the award-winning second edition
of, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get
nearly free publicity on your own or by part-
nering with your publisher; The multi
award-winning second edition of The Frugal
Editor; and Great Little Last Minute Editing
Tips for Writers .
The Great First Impression Book Pro-
posal is her newest booklet for writers. She
has three FRUGAL books for retailers in-
cluding A Retailer’s Guide to Frugal In-Store
Promotions: How To Increase Profits and
Spit in the Eyes of Economic Downturns with
Thrifty Events and Sales Techniques. Her
blog TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com,
lets authors recycle their favorite reviews
absolutely free..
P AGE 14
W RITERS ’ T RICKS OF THE T RADE