Reflecting On 6,400,000 Page Views -- Brian Feinblum's Book Marketing Buzz Blog Turns 15 Years Old!

 

Exactly 15 years ago to this day – and some 5,600 posts ago – I launched Book Marketing Buzz Blog.  I knew I had things to say, ideas to share, and experiences to convey, but I did not know I would still be penning new content today.  It just goes to show you that you never know where things will lead you to, but the first step is to try.  Take action.  

On May 13, 2011 I wrote about Donald Trump, then a billionaire real estate developer who was well known for his exploits on television’s The Apprentice.  I wrote about how I disliked him and thought him to be a buffoon but also to say I admired his publicity antics and his ability to amass free publicity.  Even now, in his second term as president, though I disagree with his bullying and extremist policies, I am completely smitten with his uncanny skill to pump his message out there.  

As a marketer, I can’t fault him.  As a human being and citizen, well, that’s another story. 

So, let’s learn from one of the best showmen around.  Authors can apply a Trumpian style to their book marketing by doing what he does: 

1.      Seek out the media – he can’t stop talking, knowing everything he says and does will be covered by the media.  

2.      Use social media – His Twitterstorms are legendary, posting prolifically at all hours of the day and night. 

3.      Stick to a script – He punches out a few key points and then repeats and restates them, not looking to say more than is needed to get his views across. 

4.      Be controversial – He confronts, bullies, teases, challenges, threatens – and that’s what becomes news. 

5.      He is high energy – The senior citizen has a lot of energy and uses a booming voice, hand gestures, and lots of intensity when speaking.  Even his tweets take on a physical form with his excessive capitalizations and exclamation points.  

6.      He speaks with conviction – He’s a real poker player who will lie to your face but do so with a compulsive self-righteousness. 

7.      He demeans challengers – Nicknames for political enemies and the media become catchy labels that people repeat. 

8.      Enmesh yourself with power and beauty – He likes photo opps in settings that usually make a statement.  If that doesn’t work, he has eye candy in wife Melania to stand by his side.  

9.      Act like an authority – Even when he is ignorant of an issue, he sounds like he knows what he’s talking about.  

10.  Pick a side – Don’t merely comment on something: take an extreme position.  

11.  Dress for success. – Put on a wig, a nice suit, and an expensive watch and you to will be taken seriously.  

12.  Paint yourself a victim. – Though he projects strength, vigor, and confidence, he often says he’s a victim of hoaxes, frauds, lies, political shenanigans, and schemers.  If you say you’re unjustly under attack, some will actually believe you.  

Authors don’t have to like Donald “The Chump” Trump, but they should admire and respect – with envy – how well he manages to get media coverage for decades, all while really having nothing good to say.  His Art of the Deal may be a best-seller, but what he really excels at is Art of the Media. 

Happy anniversary, Donnie – just don’t call me. 

My First 5 Blog Posts – 15 Years Ago

Donald Trump Branding Lessons

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/donald-trump-branding-lessons-for.html  

Publishing E-Pocalypse

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/publishing-e-pocalypse-look-at-your.html 

Book Marketing Strategies Found In A Casino

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/book-marketing-strategies-found-in.html 

Information Peddlers Challenge Book World

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/information-peddlers-are-making.html 

Coming Soon: Memoir of a Six-Year-Old

https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/coming-soon-memoir-of-six-year-old.html

 

Do You Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator! 

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 6,300,000 page views. With 5,700+ posts over the past 15 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully) and (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/10-things-my-dog-taught-me-about-marketing-books). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, three times at BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, five times at Morgan James Publishing Red Carpet, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum

 

 

 

When Should Authors Pay For Reviews?

 

There are multiple ways authors can get book reviews. One of them is to pay for ink. Let’s explore if this is a good option.

First, let’s be aware of the various types of book reviews that are out there for the taking:

* Free customer reviews from book purchasers on websites like Amazon or BN.com
* Free Newspaper/Magazine/Online Media reviews
* Author-paid professional media outlet reviews
* Public review sites like GoodReads
* Blogger book reviews
* Paid-for amazon customer reviews

Many book reviews come from manipulation, conflicts of interest, payment, or fabrication. I think book reviews cannot be fully trusted any more than one would a former convict’s job resume.

Book review space, even online, is at a premium. The established news media lack funds to endlessly review books. Over the past 10-15 years, the paid professional book space has grown wildly. With it comes questions of conflicts of interest — can such reviews be trusted by those who read them?

People are already fooled by these bought-and -paid for product plugs:

* Product placements on a TV show
* Celebrity endorsements
* Infomercials
* Advertorials
* Paid influencer social media posts

Every book review should be tainted by suspicion. I often question the value of what I am consuming and can’t but wonder if something is fake, compromised, or distorted.

When I see a book that was reviewed in an industry trade publication, like Publishers Weekly, and it was published by a Big 5 publisher who buys up ad space at the publication, I wonder if PW did them a favor.

When I see a gushing review for a mediocre book in a newspaper, I wonder if the reporter is friends with the book’s author and his judgment is clouded.

When I see a lot of five-star Amazon reviews for an unknown, self-published author, I wonder which reviews were from friends, family, and colleagues. Were these purchased?

When I see a bunch of bloggers positively reviewed a small press book, I wonder if the bloggers did it as a favor to a publicist who offered access to bestselling authors in exchange. Were they paid off?

Yes, I know, it could just be that a great book caught fire and earned great reviews — and nothing more. My point is it is hard to tell what is organic and what is colored by money, bias, or favors.  

Never, ever buy Amazon customer reviews from anyone saying they can get you dozens or hundreds of customer reviews for a fee. They likely are compensating people to write presumably favorable reviews. Amazon, if it discovers the practice, will boot your book off of its system and ban you from selling it.  

However, paying for a book review from professional outlets who publicly state their reviews are purchased is legal, ethical, and strategically advantageous to authors. The good ones will not purposely write only positive reviews; what they offer is guaranteed space or access to be reviewed. They have to uphold their reputation or risk becoming worthless. 

So, dear author, be cautious but willing to pay for certain types of book reviews, and as a consumer be wary of the reviews you see for a book. Few came for free, naturally, and from strangers or journalists. 

Do You Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator! 

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 6,200,000 page views. With 5,600+ posts over the past 15 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully) and (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/10-things-my-dog-taught-me-about-marketing-books). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, three times at BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, five times at Morgan James Publishing Red Carpet, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum

 

 

 

How Can Authors Get More Readers?

 

What are you willing to do to get more readers of your book? 

Notice I did not say sales. 

There is a difference. There are strategies to get readers, and there are other ones to get sales — at a loss. And there are other ones to get sales at a net profit. There is some overlap, for sure, but all three require unique approaches. 

Okay, so let’s say your goal is to get readers. That means you can sell books, donate them, give them out for free, and use incentives that could even include compensating people for reading your book.  

You may ask why would one put in so much time, effort, and money to get readers? 

Well, here are some good reasons: 

* The book is a loss leader for another product or service (a lawyer who seeks pricey clients pens a book about his law specialty) 

* It is an introduction to your writings and if readers like it, they will buy copies of your other books (first book of an existing five-book series) 

* You are trying to impact, help, and influence others (your book solves problems) 

* You are running for elected office (a policy or story origin book) 

* You seek to become a paid spokesperson or influencer (something about or on your area of subject expertise) 

* You are wealthy and support literacy and free access to quality books 

* You are with a non-profit and you hope the book spurs on volunteers and donors to apply and give (a book reflecting your mission or vision)  

* Seeking to get book reviews and publicity so that you can approach literary agents and book publishers  

* You want to support a charity and hope the free books raise awareness for them, maybe even help them to receive funding by having the charity resell the book  

Okay, so how do you get free readers? 

First, have your book in two forms, starting with an e-book, which makes distribution free: no printing or shipping costs.  

Second, have a trade paperback available as well. Print thousands at a time — do not use print on demand. A 200-page book may cost less than $2.50 a copy once you print a certain quantity.  

You could have a gift edition in hardcover, but that is good for selling and not cost-effective for giveaways.  

You can do an audiobook but it cost you $2000-$8000 depending on length, production fees, and who reads your book. This allows you access to some people who don’t otherwise read, but it is an added expense for you. If money is not an issue (how nice!), do the audiobook. Otherwise, no. 

To get more readers, you can: 

* Price your book at zero on amazon 

* Advertise your book giveaway 

* Donate two copies of it to every library, church, or community center that houses books 

* Hand out books or fliers where there are readers, like bookstores, libraries, bookcons, literary festivals, and writer conferences 

* Give to stores for free to either resell for profit or to give out as an add-on benefit or to people spend a certain amount at the store

* Share with websites that give out books 

* Do GoodReads and LibraryThing giveaways  

* Find charities to hand it out or use as a fundraiser for themselves 

Once you commit to the idea of getting your book into the hands of as many people as possible, the logistical details and costs become clearer and options open up to you because you are operating under an opportunistic mindset. 

Set goals. Create deadlines. Identify potential obstacles or barriers — and come up with solutions. How hard should it be to give your book away? Will there is a will, there is a way. 

Think big, think logically, and tend to low-hanging fruit opportunities to give your book away. Beg or guilt people to help you give books away.  Incentivize people financially to read and share your book.   

Once you know why you want to give your books away, and you can assess the potential payoff to doing so, the cost and the means to executing a free book campaign will cystalize. Free can lead to profit and other good things. I wish you well in giving your book away. 

Do You Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator! 

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 6,200,000 page views. With 5,600+ posts over the past 15 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully) and (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/10-things-my-dog-taught-me-about-marketing-books). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, three times at BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, five times at Morgan James Publishing Red Carpet, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum

 

 

 

Interview With Author Ron Furmaga On A Life's Journey

 

 

1. What inspired you to write A Life’s Journey? I was visiting a friend in Houston, who I had not seen in thirty years, and we were laughing about our time together in New Orleans 1990, and he suggested I write a book about my life. After a few more glasses of wine, I went home and in six months wrote about fifty chapters. On further examination, I thought there might be value in publishing the work.

 

2. What exactly is it about — and who is it written for? The book is about events and people in my life (88 years) from childhood to old age. The book details events and the people, some flawed. who influenced my life, how I managed relationships as an adult,

and set attainable goals in my career. The chapters are a guide for managing life’s challenges, mistakes, and achievements which merits a telling to young people facing daily struggles. It is about not giving up on your dreams but recognizing boundaries and the inevitable obstacles and setbacks each person can overcome with analysis and patience.

 

3. What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book?How to examine and think about your life and where your daily decisions are leading. Set realistic goals for yourself, understand the risk and take chances, allow for setbacks, avoid conflicts, be patience, and not to give up when events become unmanageable. Pay attention to details and the value of character in personal relationships. If your life is not going in the right direction, make a plan and change it!

 

4. How did you decide on your book’s title and cover design? Choice and circumstance in life are always open to chance outcomes, the challenge for each of us is to navigate where they lead. Example: avoiding the danger encounter with a reckless driver that later killed

my friend. Life threatening events abound in our daily life, some recognizable others hidden, pay attention to your surroundings and the order of things. The young man on the cover is deciding his next step based on the possibilities of what lies ahead.

 

5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers – other than

run!? Before you start being an author, find out all the steps in publishing your work. This should not be haphazard or a trial and error process. There are courses online covering every detail. Have an editor review the material and use a reputable publisher. Watch out for scams and find an experienced marketing professional to assess the manuscript prospects before publishing. Of course, I did all the above, but not in the correct order.

 

6. What trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading? Working adults have less time for print media and tend to go for audiobooks that allow them to drive, workout at the gym or do household chores. Multitasking is part of our daily environment, like listening to the radio.

 

7. Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book? As an engineer, I had years of writing commercial proposals and

technical manuals, describing equipment and processes into words. It took time from almost failing senior English composition in high school to receiving an “A” on a college term paper. Studies of grammar, rhetoric and composition finally brought a better understanding and

rules to my writing.

 

8. How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is your writing similar to? At times my writing is a little dry and too detailed but in the next paragraphs, always reverts back to storytelling. The novel “Studs Lonigan” by James T. Farrell is a trilogy which I read in the late 1950s. I liked the format and style but felt it would take too long to write a trilogy at 88.

 

9. What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book? Keeping my personal identity and accuracy of events and technical details on each page as the editor suggested altering and deleting text. A valued learning experience of what is important in the resulting work.

 

10. If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours? Memoirs can be dull, boring, and dragged out, but I kept a good pace, maintained reader interest to see what happens next, and leaving the reader to want more to the stories. Will the reader benefit from the writings … my life has been a gift as I found ways to improve the lives of others through education, shared values and life’s experiences.

 

For more information, see Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/robert-furmaga/a-lifes-journey-choice-and-circumstance/. 

Do You Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator! 

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over 6,200,000 page views. With 5,600+ posts over the past 15 years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs  by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2026.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully) and (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/10-things-my-dog-taught-me-about-marketing-books). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, three times at BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association, Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, five times at Morgan James Publishing Red Carpet, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum