How Do You Market Your Book When Reader Tastebuds Vary Greatly?

 

I spent several hours viewing subpar art in Manhattan a few months ago. However, others didn’t feel the same way. Pieces that were on display sold for hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands of dollars each. Others clearly value the very things that I see as wasted canvas and misused gallery space.

Does my art experience mirror what is taking place with books — where the majority of published books don’t appeal to many, and yet, a few books will still sell well, and they will even win awards and garner great reviews?

Everyone’s tastes vary greatly, right?

When marketing a book, it is nice if the quality of the content is good if not great, but it doesn’t always matter. One markets with an as-if mindset. You promote any book as if it is truly a treasure. You are marketing the idea of a book being great — even if by most standards it is not so great.

Most promoters just need to latch onto a few interesting talking points connected to the book, where authors can be given an opportunity to talk their books up in media interviews, news media interviews, or social media posts. If you can find an interesting hook, something newsy, relevant, or different, or a strong human interest angle, you will be in a position for the media to be interested in an interview. They, too, don’t care if the book is great or not. Their only concern is that the author will present well in a lively interview.

The key to marketing your book is to understand that your potential readers vary greatly on their preferences and needs. You can’t win everyone over. In fact, you are seeking to target the minority group of people who would be predisposed to having an interest in your book.

In a nation of 345 million, some percentage consists potentially of your readers. For instance, if it is a poetry book, maybe 10 percent could conceivably have an interest. If it were romance, maybe as much as 40-50 percent could be interested. But even then, the type of romance will dictate different percentages. A gay romance will have a smaller pool of potential readers than a heterosexual one, and a vampire romance will differ in readership size from a human-human romance story.

Of any of those percentages, only a fraction will learn of your book, and then a fraction of that will actually try it. Some percentage of those readers will like it and spread word of mouth.

Don’t get me wrong, it is not hopeless to get readers for your book. In fact, it is the opposite. I am trying to point out your potential readers do exist, that they must be identified, that you have to consistently, creatively, and assertively hunt them down and get in front of their faces. A pro-active, diversified, commonsense marketing campaign is what is needed.

Even if 99% ignore your book, never hear of it, or think it’s trash, you will have wild success. Just find the people with the same tastebuds who will like your book.

"I dream my painting and I paint my dream." --Vincent Willem van Gogh  

"Everything you can imagine is real." --Pablo Picasso  

"Understanding changes minds, but only action changes lives." --Best-Selling Author John C. Maxwell

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 6,750,000 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 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

 

 

 

An Author’s Litmus Test: Is Your Book Promotable?

Not many books are great or even fairly good. Mediocrity rules.

Further, a book’s sales numbers are often not proportionate to just how good a particular book is.  Not every good book gets discovered.

You may wonder then, why are there several new million books flooding the marketplace every year, if most are just meh and the really good ones lack a means to stick out?

The vast majority of new books, especially the self-published/hybrids, will each sell fewer than 500 books this year.

Why?

It is all about if and how a book is marketed.

No marketing? No sales.

Bad marketing? Few sales.

Good marketing? Even mediocre books have a chance of selling.

Great marketing? If a book is very good and you market it well, that book should find a deserving readership.

So, step one to having a successful book is not to necessarily write a great book, though that helps, but to develop and orchestrate a great book marketing campaign for the book.

Once an initial wave of marketing exposes the book to thousands of targeted readers, some percentage will read the book, and of those, some will spread word-of-mouth exposure for your book. They will tell friends and family, post a review, or share about your book through their social media. 

Authors want to write a great book, but what they really need to focus on is crafting a marketable book — and then marketing the heck out of it. 

Ask yourself these questions: 

* Am I qualified to write my book?

* Do I have an interesting backstory?

* How does my book compare with competing titles within my genre?

* Am I active on social media?

* How am I growing my network of connections and mailing list?

* Do I have a web site? Hoe can it be made better?

* Have I pursued paid professional reviews?

* Did I submit my book to at least a half-dozen book awards?

* Am I setting up speaking engagements with * bookstores, libraries, relevant organizations, and targeted entities?

* What are my strongest news hooks?

* Did I retain a publicist to generate media coverage of my book?

* Do I have a strong, brief elevator pitch?

* Have I identified who my targeted readers are — and where they congregate?

* Do I speak assertively and with confidence?

* Do I have an opportunistic mindset? 

This is your litmus test, the one tool to measure your success potential. Is your book promotable? It has to be!

"Great things are done by a series of small things brought together." --Vincent van Gogh  

"The more we surrender control, the more fully we connect." --Best-selling author Daniel Coyle, Flourish  

"The role of the artist is to ask questions, not answer them." --Anton Pavlovich Chekhov  

"People won't like you as a communicator because they understand you; they will like you becuase they feel understood." --Best-Selling Author John C. Maxwell

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 6,750,000 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 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

 

 

 

What Influences A Writer’s Book Marketing Decisions?

 

 

Why do writers make the decisions that they do in regards to marketing their books?

Some of it is likely for obvious reasons, but too often I wonder what drives authors to finally decide to market their books, why they do it poorly, and why they just call it quits.

I believe these are the key factors that drive an author to market their book — or not — and to what degree of success they have:

1. Belief in their book. The writer is driven by their impression of their own book. If they don’t believe they wrote a good book or that it has potential commercial success or that it can influence others, they would have little reason or drive to market it.

2. The author has to have some kind of goal in mind for his or her book. Further, the writer is seeking to fulfill a need or desire with their book, and presumably there is a recognition that to serve those needs or desires, a marketing campaign is most needed. Know your why — Why did you write this book? Now show me what you are willing to do to serve that goal, need, or desire.

3. For authors to market their books well, they must budget some amount of money, time, and mindshare to it. So, without some dedicated resources to market with, an author’s decision is made for them. What the author has to decide is whether he or she will set the marketing priority high enough in order to make a sacrifice and borrow money and time from other areas of the writer’s life.

4. Authors, in order to consider marketing their book, must have a true awareness of what is even possible, and then of what is probable. One’s actions are based on what they are cognizant of, so the more an author is educated on what could be done to market their book, the more likely they will start to envision what can be done successfully for it. If an author can handicap their odds of success and understand how a specific type of marketing campaign potentially can yield results and have a decent ROI, they will gravitate towards something.

6. There could be some ethical initiative or a calling that drives an author to promote their book. Do you have a calling or moral imperative to write and market your book?

7. An author’s level of confidence in his or herself can be a factor, too, as to what kind of marketing effort is made. Authors need a commitment to resilience. They will hear no way more often than yes, but marketing is a numbers game and the number of rejections or times you are ghosted mean nothing. Only keep score of the wins and the yesses. No is just a delayed Yes.

8. Entering into any decision could be factors such as timing, the level of risk, and news events.  Some authors take advantage of an opportunity; others can create their opportunities.

9. Decisions regarding marketing could be impacted by things such as one’s past record of success, his or her marketing skill set, and one’s network size.

Authors must market their books and target their efforts. But the factors influencing specific book marketing choices and decisions are many, so it is up to the author to take ownership and responsibility for the marketing of their book.

What will you decide?

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 6,750,000 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 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

 

 

Interview With Author Emily Swaim

 

 

1. What inspired you to write this book? I have a love-hate relationship with Peter Pan. As a child, the story of the boy who never grew up was very dear to me. But then I read the original novel as an adult, and to say that the story aged poorly is an understatement. Even early 20th-century Europeans of the time were shocked by J.M. Barrie's racism and sexism. But one thing J.M. Barrie did very well was to show the nuance of Peter's situation - how eternal youth was more of a curse than a gift, because it meant Peter could never grow as a person or understand the consequences of his actions. 

I wrote REVEN to return to Peter Pan's darker roots, exploring the dichotomy between youthful innocence and adult accountability, while also deconstructing the white male savior narrative that underpinned the original novel. 

2. What exactly is it about — and who is it written for? REVEN is a YA steampunk retelling of Peter Pan, for fans of Wicked, Howl's Moving Castle, and Treasure Planet. After losing her mother, 15-year-old Wendi Darl has worked hard to support her family and keep her academic scholarship. But an innocent mistake puts all her efforts to waste, and Wendi is soon staring at a future behind bars. 

So, when charming Peter appears outside her home and asks her to run away on his flying ship, of course Wendi accepts. He’s offering her a magic necklace that would let her defy gravity. A home with friends who appreciate her. An escape from all the mistakes of her dead-end life. 

However, Wendi may have fallen into worse trouble than what she left behind. Peter’s magic is dangerously powerful, and a hook-handed stalker has vowed to steal it for himself. Both sides see Wendi’s arrival as an opportunity to break the stalemate and end their rivalry once and for all. No one is going to save her. If Wendi wants her happy ending, she’ll need to steal it for herself. 

3. What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book? I hope the asexual and aromantic readers realize that you don't need to be in a relationship to become a 'real' adult. I hope the gifted kids learn that failure is normal and that there is always more than one way to fulfill a dream. I hope the nostalgic adults enjoy overanalyzing the themes around trauma, redemption, and civil disobedience. And I hope everyone else has fun.  

4. How did you decide on your book’s title and cover design? REVEN is NEVER backwards, making it a nod to the original Neverland. "Across Golden Skies" refers to the glittery ichor clouds that spread across the skies once a year. The cover was designed by the artist Jenny Zemanek. I gave her a list of thematic imagery that shows up throughout the book, such as Wendi's heirloom watch or the moon lilies, and Jenny brilliantly incorporated them all into one cohesive image.  

5. What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers – other than run!? The best writing advice my grad school mentor gave me was that every word needs to earn its place in the story. You should be able to point to any passage in your book and explain its purpose, whether that's showing your protagonist's fears, revealing a clue to the mystery, or simply making the reader laugh. If all a scene does is fill space between "important" story beats, then you need to cut it. I say this as someone who had to cut a LOT of words from my early drafts.  

6. What trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading?  I think novellas are making a comeback. Around ten years ago, I noticed authors selling novella side stories for established series. Lately in the indie scene, I've increasingly seen novellas being sold as standalone stories. Given our modern attention spans (or lack thereof), I think novellas may become more common in both indie and trad spaces. 

7. Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book?  I've practiced a variety of martial arts over the years. I've never done fencing specifically, but understanding the general rhythm of combat helped me pace the fights correctly. My studies in set design were also very handy for choreographing action scenes.  

8. How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is your writing similar to? I try to create stories which are fast-paced and witty on the surface, but can also provide a deeper, more thematic narrative underneath. If I had to position REVEN among other fantasy pirate stories, it would probably be shelved between Joshua Phillip Johnson's The Forever Sea and Maggie Tokuda-Hall's The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea.  

9. What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book? Cutting down the word count was definitely difficult. I have multiple flashbacks tucked away in a drawer that I may use for future bonus content. 

10. If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours? Because in a corrupt world like ours, sometimes people need to see a story where the good guys win. 

About The Author: Emily is a Midwestern writer who specializes in genre fiction. Her novella Kilohedon won Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future Contest, and her short story The Witch and the Fool featured in Luna Station Quarterly. When she's not writing, she enjoys painting, strategy games, and yoga. You can find her on Instagram/Threads/TikTok by the handle @swaimwrites. For more information, please see: www.swaimwrites.com

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 6,750,000 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 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