Friday, July 28, 2017

What Are Authors Willing To Do To Get Publicity?



Books are featured in our news and social media on a regular basis.  Read about the next celebrity tell-all, the latest best-seller, or a book tied into a lawsuit, scandal, or political race.  Maybe the book is controversial or perhaps it libels and defames someone.  Perhaps the book is being banned, protested, or contested as a hoax. What will it take for your book to get media exposure if it lacks all of those things?

My first question is:  Are you sure you don’t have any of the above going for you?  Maybe there’s a way to link to one of those catchy story lines.  Could you stir up your own controversy that generates curiosity and interest?

Ok, so if you lack a scandal, legal dealings, or a big-name connection, you become like most authors.  So what do some of them do to stick out and garner media coverage?  

They tap into a message, an idea, a philosophy, or a theory that has built-in interest. They find a way to talk about something that people are already familiar with and have strong feelings about.

Create a checklist.  Does your book, in any way, touch upon the powerful forces of:

·        Crime/Murder
·        Politics/Corruption
·        Sex/Erotica
·        Space
·        Family/Parenting
·        Life/Death
·        Celebrities/Rich/Pro Athletics
·        Religion/Morality
·        Love/Hate
·        Media
·        War/Terrorism
·        Culture
·        Exotic Locations
·        Future Technology/Science/Medicine
·        History

Of course there are other push-button topics that can help you earn attention and depending on how you present a subject or choose to comment on it, you’ll end up with tens of millions of people who potentially could have an interest in your book.  There’s a lot of mystery to life, things we don’t fully understand or yet have an awareness of.  When writers can tap into our curiosity, fear, or desire, we are ripe for the taking.  

The same goes for history, psychology, lust, and greed.  We are driven by our fantasies, our fates determined by our perceptions.  Tap into what people think, feel, or have experienced.  Get in touch with what drives the human spirit and exploit it with your bold statements, accusations, questions, or claims.

If you can’t find much to publicize about you or your book then you probably should rethink who is going to buy the book and what will move them to be interested.  There must be a hook that you can latch onto. 

Ask yourself these questions:

·        Is there a trend that my book connects to?
·        Do I make bold predictions?
·        Am I reimagining or reexamining history?
·        Do I speak to something in the current news cycle?
·        Is there an event, holiday, anniversary, or honorary day to tie my writing into?
·        Is my book similar to one on the best-seller list?
·        Do I use certain tricks to get my message across – a unique character, odd setting, play on language, or fresh writing style?
·        Does my personal or professional background make for an interesting story, even if it’s totally unrelated to my book?
·        Do I have visuals that may get attention?
·        Can I make a crazy allegation with merit?

What would a writer be willing to do to get attention?  Would an author be willing to commit a crime, sleep with someone or compromise a value just to generate publicity? Should they do such things if they are willing to do so?

I would never advocate doing anything illegal or unethical, but writers that want to go the extra mile to make a name for themselves should do so with caution and reason.  Fame is valuable, but one’s freedom, fortune, and character must not be exchanged for it.

I wonder if any authors raped, killed, or did horrific things just so they would be better informed to write about them and craft a genuine thriller?  I always wonder how many novelists experienced something that inspired their books.  I find it hard to believe that some of the best writers did not in fact they commit some of the crimes they write about. Somewhere out there is a novel based on fact, a confession waiting for the police to expose.

Perhaps some novelists, so obsessed with the work they’ve penned, want to try the real thing, the way horny people eventually move on from being satiated by a fantasy and decide to act on their deepest desires and assault someone sexually. What if authors react to their own writings, inspiring their very own crime spree?

Does blogging about this mean I killed someone – or inspire me to attack another? I would like to think not, but out of millions of books, isn’t it possible, even likely, that a criminal-turned-writer or writer-turned-criminal is amongst us?

If you’re not up to going to jail, find a good angle to exploit for publicity. There has to be something you can highlight that will get the attention of others. If all else fails, write a different book.

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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog 2017©. Born and raised in Brooklyn, now resides in Westchester. Named one of the best book marketing blogs by Book Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs 

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