Steve Wilson's Blog - Posts Tagged "publicist"
I've Hired a Publicist
As an author, you sometimes reach a point where you've done everything you can to promote your work. Giveaways, Facebook, blogs, social media, even sites like this one; I've used them all to market my novels and get the word out. And there's nothing like word of mouth to send your published efforts viral.
Not long ago, I came to the realization that I'd done everything I could to move the needle forward in promoting 'Red Sky at Morning' and 'Tempest of Fire'. There are only so many ways you can advertise your work, and eventually, you reach the end of your promotional avenues.
Recently my publisher mentioned his agent in a Facebook posting. To make a long story short, I've decided to enlist the same marketing professional to represent me and the Michael Neill series. Skip was recently interviewed on the 'Coast to Coast' radio show, a venue secured by said publicist. He's also snagged several appearances on other shows--all thanks to the publicist's efforts.
I have a few military obligations to fulfill over the next several days, but once those are complete, my newly-hired agent and I will start working on getting the word out about Michael Neill and the world of military espionage. Wish me luck! I'll keep you posted, and include updates and air times for any radio, TV, or print interviews as they become available.
And in a similar vein...
I've been writing quite a bit lately, several pages over the past few days. It's been good stuff (at least I think so), although some of it has been edited and re-written over the same period of time. Have you ever written something and decided, "Wow, that was stodgy."? I did that today. It became necessary to pull out a few high-brow words and replace them with more common ones. And I think that did it. I even commented to my wife that "I wrote something today that sounded like it came from a real author."
And one more thing. 'Red Sky at Morning' is now available on iTunes! How this whole audio book thing works was a mystery to me, up until just a few weeks ago. I had no idea what you got when you ordered one; did it show up in the mail, on a CD? Were cassettes or 8-tracks involved? Could I play it on my Walkman?
But now the audio book is out. And I know everything.
Keep reading!
Steve
Not long ago, I came to the realization that I'd done everything I could to move the needle forward in promoting 'Red Sky at Morning' and 'Tempest of Fire'. There are only so many ways you can advertise your work, and eventually, you reach the end of your promotional avenues.
Recently my publisher mentioned his agent in a Facebook posting. To make a long story short, I've decided to enlist the same marketing professional to represent me and the Michael Neill series. Skip was recently interviewed on the 'Coast to Coast' radio show, a venue secured by said publicist. He's also snagged several appearances on other shows--all thanks to the publicist's efforts.
I have a few military obligations to fulfill over the next several days, but once those are complete, my newly-hired agent and I will start working on getting the word out about Michael Neill and the world of military espionage. Wish me luck! I'll keep you posted, and include updates and air times for any radio, TV, or print interviews as they become available.
And in a similar vein...
I've been writing quite a bit lately, several pages over the past few days. It's been good stuff (at least I think so), although some of it has been edited and re-written over the same period of time. Have you ever written something and decided, "Wow, that was stodgy."? I did that today. It became necessary to pull out a few high-brow words and replace them with more common ones. And I think that did it. I even commented to my wife that "I wrote something today that sounded like it came from a real author."
And one more thing. 'Red Sky at Morning' is now available on iTunes! How this whole audio book thing works was a mystery to me, up until just a few weeks ago. I had no idea what you got when you ordered one; did it show up in the mail, on a CD? Were cassettes or 8-tracks involved? Could I play it on my Walkman?
But now the audio book is out. And I know everything.
Keep reading!
Steve
Conversation with a Publicist
Tonight I'm feeling a lot better about this whole publicist business.
After a missed step or two, I spent some time on the phone with my agent and one of his media specialists this afternoon. We talked for about 45 minutes, discussing what it is about my novels that sets them apart from, say, something like Clancy's works, or a Vince Flynn novel. By the time I ended the call, we'd hashed out an appropriate direction, as well as a few descriptions of yours truly that I'm comfortable with.
If you're an author, or a writer aspiring to be one, you might gain something from what I've learned recently, and I offer up these lessons very humbly. After 'Red Sky at Morning' was published, I followed every axiom of the trade to promote the series. Social media, Facebook, Goodreads, blogging, setting up my own website (with special thanks to my oldest son, and webmaster, Adam), giveaways, Amazon.com, and a few others that I'm forgetting right now. Ultimately, there's only so much you can do on your own, and unless you've got just the right contacts, the struggle can seem uphill most of the time. If only getting great reviews translated into sales... but they don't. I've had many, many kind words said about my books, and from a lot of people I've never met, which is very encouraging. I hope that continues. But unless the word gets passed along, Michael Neill's world will be largely unknown by the reading public.
And that's where a publicist comes in. An agent has the contacts, and can line up interviews that I could never arrange on my own. This same specialist got my publisher (also an author) on one of America's biggest late night radio shows; which, in turn, got some very good results in terms of sales.
By the end of this afternoon's call, my agent/publicist had me pegged as a 'military advocate' and also a 'military researcher'. I have a background in the Marines and the Air Force, and by virtue of serving in the present, my insights into the armed forces are fresh. We also decided to promote the books by presenting me as a military novelist with ties to Christian fiction. Those are the distinctives that set me apart from some of the big names out there who write espionage.
Michael Neill's world is filled with The Hammer; but The Hope is also there. Wish me luck as I balance the two and try to give readers their money's worth!
Steve
After a missed step or two, I spent some time on the phone with my agent and one of his media specialists this afternoon. We talked for about 45 minutes, discussing what it is about my novels that sets them apart from, say, something like Clancy's works, or a Vince Flynn novel. By the time I ended the call, we'd hashed out an appropriate direction, as well as a few descriptions of yours truly that I'm comfortable with.
If you're an author, or a writer aspiring to be one, you might gain something from what I've learned recently, and I offer up these lessons very humbly. After 'Red Sky at Morning' was published, I followed every axiom of the trade to promote the series. Social media, Facebook, Goodreads, blogging, setting up my own website (with special thanks to my oldest son, and webmaster, Adam), giveaways, Amazon.com, and a few others that I'm forgetting right now. Ultimately, there's only so much you can do on your own, and unless you've got just the right contacts, the struggle can seem uphill most of the time. If only getting great reviews translated into sales... but they don't. I've had many, many kind words said about my books, and from a lot of people I've never met, which is very encouraging. I hope that continues. But unless the word gets passed along, Michael Neill's world will be largely unknown by the reading public.
And that's where a publicist comes in. An agent has the contacts, and can line up interviews that I could never arrange on my own. This same specialist got my publisher (also an author) on one of America's biggest late night radio shows; which, in turn, got some very good results in terms of sales.
By the end of this afternoon's call, my agent/publicist had me pegged as a 'military advocate' and also a 'military researcher'. I have a background in the Marines and the Air Force, and by virtue of serving in the present, my insights into the armed forces are fresh. We also decided to promote the books by presenting me as a military novelist with ties to Christian fiction. Those are the distinctives that set me apart from some of the big names out there who write espionage.
Michael Neill's world is filled with The Hammer; but The Hope is also there. Wish me luck as I balance the two and try to give readers their money's worth!
Steve
