How Can Authors Work Their Network?

  

Do you know 10 people? Do each of them know 10 people? Well, then you have a connection to 100 people. Chances are you know more than 10 individuals, and they each likely know more than 10 apiece.  You probably have access to a few hundred, even a few thousand people.  

Ok, so how do you create and harvest a network that can be utilized to sell more books? In other words, who do you know who can do something for you and how do you get them to do something for you? 

Who do you know?  

Make a list of everyone you know. Leave no one out. Start with family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, alumni, house of worship, leagues, clubs, trade associations, condo boards, sorority sisters, charities affiliated with, friendly shop owners and workers, parents of your kids’ friends, and anyone you interact with. 

Who do they know? 

·         Book-Buying Consumers

·         Book stores

·         Libraries

·         Social media

·         News media

·         Influencers

·         Book clubs

·         Speaking opportunities

 

What do they do or know? You can ask for: 

·         Ideas

·         Information

·         Introductions

·         Lists/Resources

·         Favors

·         Book sales

·         Reviews

 

What will incentivize them? 

·         Beg

·         Trade

·         Guilt/Fear

·         Hope/Values Alignment

·         Pride

·         Bonus Reward or Pay

 

This only works if you: 

·         Believe it will

·         Try hard in a consistent manner

·         Act opportunistically and take the initiative

·         Make a great list of connections

·         Reach out to them personally

·         Follow-up with them

·         Keep good notes 

I know, I know. You may say you live in a small town, you are retired, your family is not big or close, and you have few friends. I have two answers: 1. So what? Work whomever you know and their connections. 2. Expand your circle and start reaching out to strangers.  

The way to succeed is to utilize the efforts, resources, skills, knowledge, or connections of others. Open your mouth, extend your hand, smile, and talk it up! 

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 8,600,000 page views. With nearly 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 2026, 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

 

 

 

Releasing A New Generation Into The Wild

 

Dropping off my youngest at college this past weekend felt a little surreal. I kept thinking about all of the summer camp drop-offs, mostly for French Woods, where my wife and I would drive her from Westchester to a street corner near Lincoln Center in the city. A bus would then take her to camp. She would have a heavy body bag’s worth of clothes, stuffed animals, and a few books. There would also be some Ikea plastic thing with draws and a shopping bag of miscellaneous things that fill up the world of a tween and teen.

This time we had a car load of a young adult’s life, but it was not so different than what she used to take, including that body bag of goodies. There were some new additions: lipstick, jewelry, and a laptop. She still had her tap shoes and squishy pillow dolls, but her books have mature themes and her collection of cut-off shirts accommodate her newly pierced belly button ring.

Our daughter seemed to go from being a kid to a young woman along the 386-mile car ride. She left home having just finished up her summer job as a lifeguard for the day camp she used to attend as a little girl. Next week she will start taking the classes that count towards graduating a school that could lead to a job and career. It all happens so fast.

I remember when my first child was born and a number of people advised that we soak up every day because they get big too fast. I took the advice to heart — and they are right. Every day is a gift, even when you feel the urge to scream over their behavior or sulk over the inconvenience and cost of placing your needs and desires way behind those of these little monsters.

Before my wife and I took off from her campus, I handed her a folder of 10 laminated pages of advice and Dad wisdom. I think she is aware of each of my dozens of encouraging tips and lived insights, as I always have dished them out or demonstrated with my behavior, hoping by osmosis that she will absorb some of them. But now she has it in her hands, to refer to if needed.

She will live her own truth and will need to follow her heart, make her mistakes, and find what makes her happy. Hopefully, I gave her a framework of encouragement and support for her to discover who she truly is. One day she may hand over my notes to her child, or even better, she will revise them to reflect what she knows of this evolving world at that time.

I am excited for her and am jealous of her campus environment. We need to turn our neighborhoods into campuses, where people freely socialize, exchange ideas, and expose themselves to learning something every day. I love the curiosity, energy, and beauty of the youth. They are emerging but not yet fully formed. They are open to many things and as much as they learn of “how things are done” they also are the class of people to reinvent “how things are done.” New traditions and styles await society.

And I await the return visit home of my daughter, eager to look for signs of change — or to be reminded of who she always has been. 

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 8,600,000 page views. With nearly 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 2026, 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

 

 

 

Should America Reward Book Readers?

 

If you want to enjoy a contemporary dating romance film, check out the newly released One Night Only, but I am not here to give you a movie review. The premise of the film stirred an idea in me.

The movie is about what happens to single people on the only night of the year that they are legally allowed to have sex. Three years ago, according to the story, Congress outlawed non-marital sex, but allowed for one day out of the year for as much fornication with any body or bodies. It gets monitored through technology and enforced by the police. It is intended to reduce teen pregnancy and abortions, and as a result, encourage people to get married.

It is not a dystopian story the way The Purge movies are. In those thrillers, lawlessness, including rape and murder, are unpunished for one night out of the year. W

Ok, so what is my idea? It is more of a wish, that once a year everyone has to read a book, maybe even the same one. Why? So that everyone can literally be on the same page, getting us to appreciate books and to encourage us to have a conversation about what we read.

Books can be amazing, helping us to live a better life, teaching us something, or entertaining us with an escapist story. They can put us in a certain mood or frame of mind. Congress can’t create nor enforce a law that makes people read books, but maybe an incentive can be given to people to read the same book on the same day.

What would a big enough incentive? Would the government need to pay each reader a certain amount of money? How much would be enough to get people to buy in — and how much can the government afford to pay?

There are about 270 million adults in the country. Pay each one four bucks and America’s bill exceeds a billion dollars, not to mention the cost of getting everyone the same book? Pay each person $40 and that is $10 billion. If everyone gets a Benjamin, we are talking about a $25 billion pay-out if everyone participated.

Should we have to pay money to get people to read books?

Well, if we get more people to read books, it is worthwhile, assuming they develop a reading habit afterwards. If we get people who otherwise read books to join others and read a specific book, society wins if this is a really special book that launches people to discuss something that touches hearts, improves lives, or exposes us to ideas or facts we were not aware of.

We need a book movement in this country, one that gets more people to read more books and for the masses to read some of the same books at the same time.

Imagine what would happen. More books would get sold and read. More people would come to see books as a good go-to resource for leisure, motivation, education, awareness, or values exploration. More conversations would be initiated about books, the very ones that can shape our lives and create a better society.

Should there ever be a day like what is featured in The Purge? Should there be a day like what is depicted in One Night Only? They both pose interesting situations for society, but what would truly benefit us is a day of incentivized reading of one book for the nation.

If we all focused our attention on one book that highlights one issue, say homelessness, crime prevention, education, healthcare, love, or death, could we be in a better-informed position to take proper action to support or eradicate something?

If we all understood what needs to be done to help domestic abuse victims, wouldn’t we do those things? If we all could find ways to make sure that every sick person has access to affordable healthcare, would we not act in unison? If we could all come to understand how to live a happier life, would we not then act on such ideas, beliefs, or facts?

Maybe I am still too idealistic. Perhaps I ask for too much. But why not try this?

I know, I know. Where are we getting $25 billion from? Who chooses which book to read? Hoe does one prove they read it? How are follow-up discussion groups organized and run?

No clue, but we can figure out the details once there is enough buy-in for the concept.

Maybe I should run on a book-centric platform for Congress! Then I can write a book about it and have the government incentivize you to read it.

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 8,200,000 page views. With nearly 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 2026, 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

 

 

 

Do You Need The Book Marketing Edge?

 

How does a not-so-attractive man get a good-looking, younger woman?

How does a gas-guzzling SUV sell well in a society grappling with high energy costs and global warming?

Why do airplane passengers pay more for an aisle or a window seat?

Why do some restaurants have long waiting lists for mediocre food and lousy service?

Why do some great books fail to sell while some of the most popular books seem to lack editorial value?

You know the answer.

It is all about marketing, packaging, and timing. Even though logic would dictate the opposite outcome in many cases, savvy marketing presentations and catchy slogans persuade us to see things differently.

Authors must embrace this or simply accept their anonymity. Merit or talent does not guarantee popularity or a pay-off for a writer. But an author’s book marketing prowess can generate love for a book — and yield sales success.

How are you marketing your book? Are you doing many of the things that you need to do, doing them correctly, and doing them often? Do you even have a clue on what you should do — or how to do them?

Now, it is not like everyone is stupid and is tricked into doing unwise things just because of a good marketing campaign, but there is something to be said for the influence of a strong effort to sell people on something. Anything.

You need to be out there, pushing your product (book) and message to a targeted group of consumers (your potential readers).

Make a plan. Get help. Take action. You need the marketing edge. Now.

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 8,600,000 page views. With nearly 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 2026, 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