When this article, The Ten Awful Truths About Publishing by Steve Piersanti of Berrett-Koehler Publishers, landed in my inbox, I breathed a deep sigh of relief. Warning: It’s a positively frightening read that will make you want to hide underneath your covers… or hurl a glass across the room. If there is bourbon in that glass, down it quickly, read the article, and then throw the glass across the room.
So why did I breathe a sigh of relief?
Because someone else far more important than me said it – all the things I’ve been thinking, saying, that have made me change the way I work. A publisher said the things. The things about the many, many books on the market; how they sell or don’t; and the constant change due to disruptors (TikTok) and disruptions (supply chain issues).
So now we know about The 10 Awful Truths about Book Publishing. And now we understand that we have to think differently, reset expectations, and get to work. But first, we take inventory:
- Who are your readers?
- Can you describe your work in a sentence?
- As it relates to marketing and PR, list all of the tactics you’ve tried – big and small. What failed? What worked? What no longer exists?
- What kind of money have you spent or are you willing to spend?
- Is there a particular marketing effort that you are interested in but know little about?
- What do you really know about when it comes to PR and marketing?
- What do you think you know?
- What do you dislike?
- Can you name a few books and authors in your genre that seem to be everywhere? (aside from Colleen Hoover and James Patterson)
- Check your emotions:
- Do you blame?
- Are you envious of fellow authors?
- Are your emotions deeply tied to your book?
- Can you separate the emotion from the business?
- What are the blanket statements you’ve heard e.g.
- Facebook is dead!
- Bookstagram doesn’t lead to book sales!
- Only national media coverage will move the needle!
- No one reads hardcover anymore!
- No one reads eBooks!
- If I’m not on TikTok my book won’t sell!
- How much do you really know about social media?
- What platforms do you like?
- What platforms do you dislike?
- Do you believe social media sells books?
- Are you in utter despair over TikTok/Booktok?
- List the media that gives coverage to books and authors.
- List the media/blogs/influencers that have given your previous books coverage.
- List the retailers that carry books outside of your usual bookstores and Amazon.
- Do you know where the readers hang? Are you there?
- How are you communicating with your readers?
- Have you updated your bio?
- Have you saved your files – the manuscript PDFs, the marketing plans, the press materials?
- Who are your friends in the industry?
- What do you know about making a bestsellers list?
- How does your book cover look? Can it compete with the books on the tables at Barnes & Noble?
- How is the synopsis of the book – does it speak to your specific reader?
- What established authors can you compare your work to?
What’s the key takeaway for you in Steve Piersanti’s article? Are you ready to take inventory? What are your take inventory questions?