What Is The New Media Landscape For Authors?

 

Writers live in an interesting time. There are more news media outlets than ever before, but each one, on average, has fewer viewers/leaders/listeners than was the case at the turn of this century. Authors must understand that getting media exposure for their book is both easier and harder than before.   

First, in order to understand today’s media/landscape, let’s define what it looks like. Today’s media that is available to authors consists of:

• Television
• Radio 
• Print
• Online 
• Social Media 

Let’s examine the media outlets further: 

PRINT

• Daily/Weekly Newspapers
• Magazines: Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly
• Newswires
• Newsletters
• Trade Journals
• Industry Publications
• Airline Magazines
• Book Publishing/Review Magazines 

ONLINE

• Blogs (guest post)
• Book Reviews
• News Sites
• Podcasts (Be Interviewed)
• Feature Stories On The Sites Of Traditional Media
• Digital TV 

SOCIAL MEDIA

Create your own content- blog, podcast, video-channel, and publish it on:

 

• Facebook 
• Twitter 
• Instagram 
• Linked In 
• Youtube
• Pinterest
• Tik Tok  

RADIO

Be interviewed or featured on shows that have large and/or targeted/ listenership. Seek out shows with certain demographics. Will you pursue AM, FM, or satellite? 

TELEVISION

• Morning News Shows
• Talk Shows
• Midday News
• Evening News
• Late-Night Talk Shows
• Syndicated Talk Shows 

TV can cover events, do a news story that relates to your book, or conduct an interview with the author. TV can also televise a presentation or an author’s speech.  

You have media outlets that are:

• International
• Nationwide or Syndicated
• Regional
• Local  

An author can get coverage of their book by:

• Being interviewed about their book
• Being the subject of a feature or news story
• Having it reviewed
• Writing a byline article, op-ed, or guest blog post
• Having excerpts of the book reprinted 

Here are some facts about the media/landscape:

• Media coverage can be free or sometimes paid for.
• There are nearly 8,000 new books minted daily, each competing for attention.
• Publicists outnumber journalists more than 6:1.
• More media outlets and opportunities exist than ever before.
• The value, or number of eyeballs consuming the media outlet, is diluted.
• You will need a certain quantity of quality media placements to make a dent.
• Most media coverage can take place by phone, email, zoom or in a local studio -- it’s becoming rarer that an author needs to travel or physically be where the media is. 

The window of time to pierce the media landscape could begin 6-12 months prior to a book’s release - and could last as much as 3-6 months after its publication date. Launching a book is not quite the same as launching a movie or other content, products, or services. Marketing a book is a unique process, and understanding the news media landscape for authors is undoubtedly crucial to their success.

 

Need Book Marketing Help?

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their 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!

 

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About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on Twitter @theprexpert. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2023. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.3 million pageviews. With 4,400+ posts over the past dozen 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.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and two jobs 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. He recently hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. 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. He has been featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald. For more information, please consult: www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum.