Who Do Authors Need To Know?

 

 

As a writer, your success will be driven not just by how well you write, but how well you know the people who can help you. Do you even know of who you should befriend?

 

Let’s develop a list of the players that you may benefit from having a connection to:

 

For the production of your book, you will need:

 

·         Book editors

·         Cover design artists

·         Interior layout designers

·         Illustrators

 

To get published, you will need access to:

 

·         Literary agents

·         Book publishers

·         Hybrid or Self-publishers

·         Book distributors or wholesalers

·         Book publishing consultants or book packagers

 

To grow as a writer, you might need:

 

·         A writing coach

·         Writing association president

·         Researchers

 

To sell your book, you need access to:

·         Booksellers

·         Librarians

·         Book clubs

·         Bulk book buyers

 

To market your books, you will need:

 

·         Advertising reps

·         Book marketers and/or publicists

·         Book reviewers

·         Journalists

·         Book influencers

·         Book bloggers

·         Other writers

·         Readers

·         Speaker bureaus

·         Book award presidents

 

Yes, that is potentially a lot of people that you will need to know. Provided you start to connect with some knowledgeable, experienced, helpful, and honest people, it will get easier to meet the rest that can help you along your book writing, publishing, marketing, and selling journey.

 

Build your network by:

 

·         Researching who’s who and what they do

·         Asking reputable people for referrals

·         Paying attention to who sounds intelligent and trustworthy

·         Attending writer conferences, publishing events, and joining several writer associations

 

Whether your network online, in-person, or by word-of-mouth, make notes of whom you meet or become aware of. At some point, you may need to ask for their help, hire them, or pick their brain. Everyone that you know or meet can be helpful to you, some more than others. Treat everyone respectfully, seek to be of assistance to them, and always keep your ears and eyes open to the opportunities that may present themselves.

 

 

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 5,000,000 page views. With 5,400+ posts over the past 14 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.”  Copyright 2025.

 

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). 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, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, 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