Storm Silences Book Marketing Efforts

The New York City region and a chunk of the Eastern part of the United States was walloped by a record-setting storm on Sunday and Monday. There have been many stronger Hurricanes than this one to hit the country, but not one that ever hit this part of the nation or displaced and impacted this many people and property.   Somehow, America is resilient, strong and determined and we will find a way to come together to move past what is sure to be lingering damage for many years.   Suddenly, New York City has turned into New Orleans and Miami overnight – another big city with storm and water issues. What should be dubbed the storm of the century is starting to look not so unusual, given last year we had another “rare” storm (Irene) and the crazy Halloween snowstorm that wreaked havoc on us. Could such disasters now become the norm for us?

I lived in South Florida during Hurricane Andrew 20 years ago. That was the strongest storm I was ever associated with. At the time, it did record damage and killed dozens of people. Parts of Miami, like Kendall, were just flattened. I never saw destruction on a mass scale like that, where entire roofs and walls were blown off of buildings, houses and stores. Luckily, I was north of the center of damage, but was in an impacted part of Ft. Lauderdale.

It seems to be everyone has a story to tell, some worse than others. You meet someone who says they have power, no injuries and no destruction, but they cannot stand being cooped up in their house and inconvenienced by the storm. You meet someone else and they lost power but have a generator. Then you meet someone with no power and no backup plan. Then you see some damage on people’s property, but nothing huge. Then you see a home with a gigantic tree through the roof. And then you hear of tragic loss of life. And you realize whatever happened to you means nothing compared to the loss of life. Yet, each of us understands we suffered some type of loss – mentally and spiritually, if not physically and financially. The toll of life can be heavy.

I have no wisdom today regarding book marketing and publicity except to say you should take a break through the weekend before you resume contacting news media based in or covering the impacted areas. They are overwhelmed professionally with this story and then soon the election – and are personally impacted by the storm in some way. Your book will have its day to shine and the media will be eager to move on from the calamity of the day, but for now, remain silent. There is sorrow and pain flowing in the streets and through ravaged areas. This city is mourning and seeking to take account of what has happened. The recovery has just begun and the healing process requires a moment of reflection for all of us.

Be thankful for what you have and for what you didn’t lose. It can always be better but it can always be worse.

Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer, the nation’s largest book promoter. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person.