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The Frugal Book Promoter - 3rd Edition: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or by partnering with your publisher

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The Frugal Book Promoter assures your book gets the best possible start in life, whether your publisher assigns zero dollars or thousands to your book’s marketing campaign. A former publicist, the author provides no-nonsense basics to build the essentials you need to build a time-saving social media campaign and knock’em dead lists of influencers that will be more effective than anything you could buy. Pick and choose from dozens of ideas for promotions that she developed or refined through extensive (and award-winning) book campaigns of her own. Several will match your pocketbook and personality.

"The most expensive part of book promotion are the mistakes. This book will save you time and money."
--Dan Poynter, legendary author of The Self-Publishing Manual

"Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s Frugal Book Promoter is... a classic!"
--Bookbaby

"[Carolyn Howard-Johnson is] an incessant promoter who develops and shares new approaches for book promotion."
--Marilyn Ross, founder, Small Publishers of North America and coauthor of The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing

"The Frugal Book Promoter has given me ideas that would never have occurred to me and has changed the way I think about book promotion."
-- Mark Logie, award-winning poet and short-story writer

Carolyn Howard-Johnson (is a multi award-winning author of both fiction and nonfiction. She is a former publicist for a New York PR firm and a marketing instructor for the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program. She has appeared on hundreds of TV and radio stations both nationally and locally, and her poetry, essays, columns and stories are published frequently in journals and on the web. She admits to loving marketing almost as much as she loves writing.

From Modern History Press

293 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 1, 2019

17 people are currently reading
13 people want to read

About the author

Carolyn Howard-Johnson

45 books331 followers
Carolyn Howard-Johnson brings her experience as a publicist, journalist, marketer, and retailer to the advice she gives in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers and the many classes she taught for nearly a decade as instructor for UCLA Extension’s world-renown Writers’ Program. The books in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers have won multiple awards. That series includes the flagship book now in its third edition and published by Modern History Press, The Frugal Book Promoter and second edition of The Frugal Editor. Both won awards from USA Book News, Readers’ Views Literary Award, the marketing award from Next Generation Indie Books and others including the coveted Irwin award. How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically launched to rave reviews from Jim Cox, Editor-in-Chief of Midwest Book Reviews and others:

“How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically [and other books in the series] could well serve as a textbook for a college Writing/Publishing curriculum.”

Howard-Johnson is the recipient of the California Legislature’s Woman of the Year in Arts and Entertainment Award, and her community’s Character and Ethics award for her work promoting tolerance with her writing. She was also named to Pasadena Weekly’s list of “Fourteen San Gabriel Valley women who make life happen” and was given her community’s Diamond Award for Achievement in the Arts.

The author loves to travel. She has visited eighty-nine countries and has studied writing at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom; Herzen University in St. Petersburg, Russia; and Charles University, Prague.

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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Profile Image for W. Whalin.
Author 44 books412 followers
July 4, 2024
Every Author Needs This Resource

There are over 11,000 new books which enter the marketplace every day. This truth is daunting for every author. If you aren’t telling others about your book or need some innovative and experienced ideas to reach new readers, you need THE FRUGAL PROMOTER. Carolyn Howard-Johnson has some unique background as a retailer and promoter of other books as well as her own. Read this book and act on the ideas which will help your book succeed where others fail.

In the early pages, Howard-Johnson writes, “This book is for authors who want their books to soar and do not want their careers to languish. It is structured so authors can select chapters that address aspects of their marketing plan most needed at any given time…THE FRUGAL PROMOTER is not a textbook. It contains opinions—some as black and white as the page you find them on. It is me talking to you, sharing with you.” (Page vi)

This resource is an idea cornucopia and I highly recommend every author use it often and make their pages dogeared.

W. Terry Whalin is an editor and the author of more than 60 books including his recent 10 Publishing Myths, Insights Every Author Needs to Succeed .
Profile Image for Sarah Neofield.
Author 4 books39 followers
October 9, 2019
If you’re looking to transform your writing hobby into a writing career, or are a published author who feels they could be doing more to promote their work, Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s The Frugal Book Promoter may be just what the doctor ordered. What sets this book apart from the many hundreds of books promising to show you how to promote your book is its focus on frugal, strategic, ethical promotion.

For anyone aiming to become an author, the statistics on what happens to books once they hit the shelves aren’t all that rosy. You might think the hard part’s over once you’ve finally gotten a contract, or once you’ve finally hit ‘publish’ on your platform of choice. But, The Frugal Book Promoter: How to get nearly free publicity on your own or partnering with your publisher by Carolyn Howard-Johnson points out that around a third of all traditionally published books that make it to bookstore shelves are returned to the publishers. They are then remaindered, or, when that fails, shredded.

As Howard-Johnson plainly puts it: ‘If you don’t promote yourself and your book early, the same thing (or something like it) could happen to your book.'

Many writers, Howard-Johnson points out, suffer from the fear of being successful as much as from the fear of being rejected. We worry that, if we promote our work, people may not like it. But also that if we are successful in doing so, we may be considered ‘sell-outs’ or ‘fakes’.

Marketing, promotion, whatever you call it, is something many authors have an aversion to – if not a downright fear of. And, myriad excuses to avoid. Howard-Johnson covers many of these excuses, and offers rational antidotes to them, in Section I of her book, ‘Getting Started and Getting on with It’.

Others among us feel that it isn’t our ‘job’ to promote our books. That marketing is something the publisher should do. This idea is grounded in the reality that most writers aren’t trained publicists. Yet even when a publisher does assign a publicist to an author or book, as Howard-Johnson points out, their efforts will be much better rewarded if the author is proactive. ‘A publisher’s publicist can only do so much without an author’s cooperation’.

Recently, the internet has been abuzz with stories of writers and other creatives losing shocking amounts of money – even winding up in debt – thanks to their self-promotional efforts following a lack of support from their publishers. Reading these articles, I couldn’t help but think how many of these authors – and, I’m sure, many others– might benefit from reading The Frugal Book Promoter – a book which, in its first edition, was originally subtitled ‘How To Do What Your Publisher Won’t Do.’

I recently tweeted my appreciation for this classic, saying ‘I read an earlier edition of this book (cover-to-cover, twice!) and it remains one of the most comprehensive and best I’ve come across!' and when the author offered me a copy of the updated edition, I was overjoyed to accept.

Having worked not only as a retailer and journalist, but also as a publicist, and with a publicist (for the release of her own novel, This is the Place), Howard-Johnson is better placed than most to write about marketing. Although the book promotes a frugal approach, it does not claim that every effective promotion is free. Instead, the author explains clearly how writers can use their time instead of their money to promote their books, as well as giving examples of when spending is warranted, and when it offers little (website design, for example, can be largely DIY with the free yet professional-quality tools Howard-Johnson recommends, and promotional gifts or ‘swag’, with the exception of quality thank you gifts, she also warns against).

Aside from its focus on frugality, another stand-out feature of Howard-Johnson’s book is its inclusion of ‘classic’ media, such as newspapers, television, and radio. While The Frugal Book Promoter also provides extensive information on ‘new’ media (author websites, blogging, social media), the advice in these sections may read as if it is targeting an older audience – one that needs convincing that online engagement is worthwhile, for example, as opposed to a younger audience which might need convincing to stop scrolling through social media all day and actually write something.

As someone who is perhaps between these two extremes (among the first generation of teenaged internet users, and someone who went on to teach technology to both those younger and more mature than myself), I find Howard-Johnson’s approach refreshing.

For ‘digital natives’, her advice on TV, radio, newspapers etc. is a much needed balance to the internet-focused messages out there. She points out that competition for appearances in these outlets is perhaps less than ever, since everyone is so focused online.
For ‘digital immigrants’, the Frugal Book Promoter helpfully translates new media through the lens of old media which might be more familiar to this audience. Howard-Johnson holds the reader’s hand through the process of setting up a website or a blog, providing just enough technical detail for it to not be too overwhelming.

Comparing the updated third edition with the earlier version I previously read, while the book is thoroughly up-to-date, overall, I did not find many major changes. This, I believe, is because the advice in The Frugal Book Promoter is designed to age well. If you’ve already read an earlier edition of The Frugal Book Promoter, you already know that the book is like a fine wine. It’s a classic. You probably don’t need to buy the updated version (I’d recommend getting one of the author’s other books instead – seeing How To Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically mentioned in this book has sparked my interest, but she has many more titles to choose from as well).

On the other hand, if you haven’t come across this book promotion classic before, I really recommend it, no matter what stage you're at in your writing career. While some of the specific media outlets it mentions may change, the principles of frugality, efficiency, and ethics it espouses will never date. It’s the perfect companion to all of those more online-focused books out there, and who knows – it might just save you a lot of heartache and a lot of debt.
Profile Image for Jack Hassard.
Author 25 books24 followers
December 28, 2022
I came across this preparing a 800 word article for a newsletter (at Indigo Editing) about key ideas I’ve learned about marketing my own book, The Trump Files, 2022. I perused at first and realized it was a good refresher for what had learned about book promotion. The author is an authority on this area of expertise. I liked her personal writing style which was evidence of of her experience and knowledge. If you are a neophyte or experienced book marketer, I recommend her book.
Profile Image for Carolyn Wilhelm.
Author 16 books47 followers
June 11, 2021
She makes it easy!

This is a nice new edition of this book. Newly organized! Commandments to follow, explanations of terms with real life examples, and should you DIY or hire help? What to do, how, and why. Everything an author needs to know, self-published or not.
Right, even traditionally published authors unfortunately need to publicize their own books. Excellent book.
Profile Image for Doug Landgraff.
Author 3 books4 followers
November 12, 2024
Carolyn Howard-Johnson's The Frugal Book Promoter-3rd Edition is chock full of great advice to promote your written offerings. It is so good that I'm going to read it again to distill all of the information it holds and commit it to memory. It is so informative that it warrants a third read-through to make sure I got it all.
Profile Image for Sherry Lee.
Author 15 books123 followers
April 15, 2021
I appreciate the organization of the book, that as an author I could skip around chapters to what best suits my needs. I suggest for getting the most from this resource, read it before your book has been published. Most helpful for indie published authors.

This book was gifted to me.
Profile Image for Magdalena.
Author 45 books150 followers
November 10, 2019
I first read, and reviewed Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s The Frugal Book Promoter in 2011, when the first edition came out. Since then it has been my go-to for ideas on ways to promote my books cheaply - which is, of course, what every author needs these days. It’s a noisy world, and no matter how well-written, or what kind of publisher support you may have, if you don’t promote well, it’s unlikely that your books will attract notice. Few of us have big budgets for promotion, and most of us have a budget close to zero. Creative and effective ideas for book promotion are more than just nice-to-haves, they’re critical, and Howard-Johnson is about as knowledgeable as it gets on the subject. Of course books like this go out of date quickly, so the re-releases are also vital, as they allow for technological and cultural change. The 3rd edition came out in September 2019, and is right up-to-the-minute, exploring new ways of branding, developing a platform, and getting your work out into the world. Howard-Johnson’s prose remains utterly clear, accessible, and warm--like having a very helpful, clued-up conversation with your best friend--and the book is as inspirational as it is practical.

The latest version of the book contains nearly 300 pages (quite a lot more than the first edition!) of high quality information on every thing from how to promote your work ethically, public relations, creating media releases and a media kit, querying for reviews (and believe me, this is a much needed skill!), making use of radio and other media, using the internet and social media (and how not to use it), including ensuring that you use online bookstores correctly, making the most of reading groups, revitalising old titles, recycling your work, and so much more. As with the original version, the book comes with a number of handy template, scripts, codes and examples, but these have been updated so that they continue to remain relevant to a modern author. The book is beautifully structured and well indexed, so you can find what you need when you need it fast. Howard-Johnson has created a number of mnemonics to help simplify the overall promotion process:
The Six-P maxim is the one that makes me a nag. The more organized you are, the more you know early on, the earlier you start to practice promotion and publicity magic, the more good it will do for your book. The more you learn the easier it is. And that leads me to the three most important Ps for marketing books. Platform, Publicity, Public Relations.

Throughout the book, there is careful attention paid to ethics, which I love. The Frugal Book Promoter is most certainly not about buying likes, reviews, unsolicited mailings, or manipulating people into purchasing something they don’t want. These practices happen all too frequently, and sometimes they work in the short term, but they are unsustainable and no way to manage a lifelong career. Ethical marketing all about relationships, giving people work they will get value from, and working within carefully obtained permissions. It’s about creating a brand that people will continue to trust, so you’re not just selling one book, but yourself as a person. This kind of work builds on itself and each thing that you do increases the overall messages you’re putting out, creating a cumulative effect:
Good PR, of course, is carefully targeted. But mostly PR is connecting with people in a way that makes them feel cared for, and those connections are made—with love and expertise—over and over again. Those are the essentials and they work. Done this way, great publicity becomes great public relations and vice versa.

I won’t give away too many of Howard-Johnson’s marvellous tips here, but suffice to say that the book is full of them—many of them inventive, and all of them focusing on credibility and multi-tasking - getting impact for your effort. As the title suggests, most of the ideas here are either inexpensive or free, though not without effort. There are a few chapters which are worth the whole cost of the book. These include, to my mind, chapters on querying and pitching--something I repeatedly see done badly—and the chapter on creating a media kit. I have not seen either of these topics covered in such detail, or with such clarity.  Even seasoned self-promoters will learn new things from these chapters. The reviews section too, is particularly thorough, with plenty of current links and samples. There are also lots of tips about what doesn’t work and where to save your money, your time, your sanity, and how to best manage your all-important networks--for the long run. Put simply, The Frugal Book Promoter is one of the best all-purpose books for developing a promotional plan for your work that won’t break the bank or destroy your relationships. This is a book keeps on providing practical, easy to apply ideas to get your work noticed, and to create a viable, sustainable, ethical platform that will continue to create valuable promotion for authors of all genres.  It’s one of those guides that should be on every author’s bookshelf.
Profile Image for B. Goodwin.
Author 5 books154 followers
January 19, 2020
Need some nitty-gritty how-tos for getting nearly free publicity? Try Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s The Frugal Book Promoter. The third edition has just come out and it is filled with updates suitable for 2019. Whether you are doing it yourself or partnering with someone, you’ll find tips for promoting your book by doing what you love. By the way, you can learn to love publicizing your book.

Need a sample query letter, media release, or blog entry? This book has them. How about a sample script for a phone pitch? The book includes that too. The Table of Contents will help you find exactly what you need.

This is a valuable guide you will come back to again and again. Along with all her other strategies, Howard-Johnson reminds writers to build relationships and say thank you. No way kindness can do you wrong.
Profile Image for James Garrison.
Author 4 books7 followers
December 9, 2019
Helpful but too chatty

Some useful insights from a marketing pro, but there was quite a bit of cornstarch added as filler to make a marketable pie.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews