I HAVE always been afraid of publicity and marketing. When I was a new college grad, I turned down an offer to be a publicity assistant at a large publishing company despite being in dire need of a job. As an introvert, I felt incapable of promoting a book and hoped that I could avoid doing it when I became an author—an aspiration that was then a distant dream. Remote from the media and public, I imagined, I would hand off my book to an entire department that, like a relay team, would go forth and sell it. Now that two of my novels have been published, I’ve come to appreciate the role I can play as a partner in this process. It’s not as intimidating as I once thought.
With my first novel, A Small Revolution (Little A, 2017), I was a bystander to the promotion process. A few months before my publication date, I attended a meeting in Manhattan with my agent, editor, and publicist. Everyone at the table seemed excited, but there were very few details presented about the marketing and publicity plans for the book. In the following months, the publicist notified me of a handful of local events, a promotional offer on Kindle, and a few reviews in trade journals. At times various retailers offered special promotional pricing on the book, which I was asked to spread the word about on my own social media platforms. Later, after the book was published, I wondered if I should have asked more questions during that first meeting. I didn’t know what I had a right to expect. Did a publicity and marketing department typically approach three or thirty media outlets about reviews and interviews? Had my book been given the standard promotional effort? Should I have worded my e-mails differently in my follow-up to the team? How did my actions affect the way the book was presented to the public?
When was finally released, I was gratified to receive a couple of reviews and kind feedback from readers, but I kept waiting for some wider coverage from the media, which never came. Were my expectations unrealistic? Whymystery. My frustration was my own burden to carry.
