“Please
be honest,” the voice pleads through the phone.
“What
do you think of my book?”
This
is the closest thing to a woman asking her boyfriend, lover, spouse, “Do these
pants make me look fat?”
How
does one answer either question?
When
potential clients ask me what I think of their book I always cringe. If I love it, will they believe me when I say
so – and if it’s mediocre and I need to dance artfully around a negative
critique, can I live with myself?
I’m
in no-man’s land, that place where one can’t be fully honest without hurting
someone’s feelings, losing business, or not being believed. What’s a book promoter to do?
I
embrace as much honesty as I can afford.
I am a pay-to-say guy in an industry littered with those who practice
the art of bullshitting. Authors see me
not only as a coach, strategist, and advisor — but as a therapist. There are limitations to what I can, should, or
would do or say to a client, but when it comes to the dreaded question
borne of insecurity by the writer, What do you think of my book?, I look to say something that we can both live
with.
If
it’s great, I will say so. If it’s
awful, I wouldn’t embarrass myself by offering to work on it. When the book is just ordinary, as
statistically most fall on this spectrum, I can neither gush over it nor be
dismissive. I have to find the right
amount of praise and express optimism that’s not fully there – while making
sure I don’t overpromise. I set expectations
and only offer to do what I think is achievable and targeted. Many times I offer certain guarantees or
deliverables and so if I vow to deliver, I will deliver – even if I told a
white lie about my view of their book.
You
can’t blame me for disclosing this. The
truth is everyone has to do this in their jobs, at home, and in their
interactions with the world - unless they enjoy having no friends, poverty, and
zero love life.
I
will not voluntarily gush over a book unless I feel it, but when confronted and
directly asked by the potential client what I think about their book, I realize
that I’m no different than an escort.
I’m there to make someone feel good, to give them what they want. It’s only words, right? Oh, the inner torment that consumes me every
time that cringe-worthy question is asked!
What’s
even more interesting is many of the authors preface their question with a
statement like, “I know you can’t really tell me, but…’ or they’ll acknowledge
we are in a business relationship that might not yield brutal honesty and yet
they still ask.
How
fragile our writers are, looking for love, support, confirmation, and
legitimacy from anyone, anywhere — even from their book publicity whore.
Thirty-five
years ago, I saw a powerful off-broadway play about a man who didn’t think his
family loved him. He paid actors to be
his son, daughter, and wife – to act like them but to also shower him with love,
praise, and encouragement. At some point
he wanted to believe them but kept remembering who was writing the checks. The thing is, his fake family did grow to care and love him, but he couldn’t love himself.
Authors don’t need an outsider to validate them – they know in their heart if they have a really good book. But that won’t stop them from asking. And I won’t stop answering with the answer they need to hear.
Authors don’t need an outsider to validate them – they know in their heart if they have a really good book. But that won’t stop them from asking. And I won’t stop answering with the answer they need to hear.
“When I let go of
what I am, I become what I might be.”
--Lao
Tzu
“All endings are also
beginnings. We just don’t know it at the
time.”
--Mitch
Albom
“We must let go of
the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.”
--Joseph
Campbell
How Book Publishers Grow Their Brand & Sales With Their
Authors’ Help
How Authors Can Market To Libraries Successfully
Unfu*k Your Book marketing
How Authors Get A Yes Out Of Others
Some key principles to rally your book marketing around
How to write powerful, effective book advertising copy
that sells tons of books
So what is needed to be a champion book marketer?
Brian Feinblum’s insightful views, provocative opinions, and
interesting ideas expressed in this terrific blog are his alone and not that of
his employer or anyone else. You can – and should -- follow him on Twitter
@theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels much more
important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by
BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2019. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in
Westchester. His writings are often featured in The Writer and
IBPA’s Independent. This was named one of the best book
marketing blogs by Book Baby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2018 as one of the
top book marketing blogs. Also named by WinningWriters.com as a "best
resource.” He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.