Book publishing is a long game.
There’s no shortage of book publishing advice out there, and in some ways, that’s part of the challenge. Writers are tasked with an endless to-do list of things they should be doing to help establish or further their writing careers and successfully launch their books. It can be overwhelming, but it doesn’t have have to be, nor should you let it.
In this newsletter, I will be exploring and sharing strategies that you can implement to build your platform and launch your books — not with gimmicks, but with the long game in mind — brick by brick. Expect easy-to-implement takeaways and experiential based insights with an emphasis on keeping it creatively fun and authentic.
I’ve worked in book publishing for most of my career — running marketing and publicity campaigns for publishers big and small. A big part of this kind of job is working directly with authors — from debut novelists publishing their first book to famous people / bestselling authors with huge established audiences.
The authors that I’ve seen carve out the best careers are the ones who take the long game approach. Every project they engage and book that they write is an opportunity to creatively strengthen their foundational platforms and grow their connections to readers and partners. I have always tried to steer the authors I work with in this direction, and if they are already approaching things in this fashion, I deeply appreciate how much I learn from them.
This newsletter will be helpful no matter what stage of your writing career you are currently at:
Writing your first book.
Working to land an agent.
Planning your first book’s launch campaign.
Self-publishing a book.
An established, published author with an extensive catalog to your name.
A published author with a rough sales track (meaning your previous book(s) did not sell very well) looking to reverse the negative trend.
I look forward to sharing these strategies, and hearing from you along the way.
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Some background on the writer of this newsletter:
I’ve been very fortunate to have spent most of my career to-date in the publishing world. As an author, I’ve self-published zines and books, been published by a Big 5 publisher, and had stories and poems published in numerous literary journals. As an educator, I’ve taught publishing courses at NYU and Mediabistro, and spoken at conferences far and wide. And as a marketer, I’ve worked and run departments at publishers both big and small, leading campaigns for some of the most successful, bestselling authors of all time, as well as writers who are just launching their careers. My inspiration is fed by what happens in the publishing space, and I love being a part of the community that drives what’s going to happen next.
A quick note on free vs paid newsletter subscriptions:
Book Publishing Brick By Brick is a weekly newsletter. For now, both free and paid subscribers receive the weekly newsletter, but access to past newsletters is for paid subscribers only. The growing archive, which features insightful strategies on everything from buy links to gauging campaign momentum to bookplates to pre-order campaigns, becomes a stronger knowledge base with each published newsletter. Additionally, paid subscribers get highly useful bonus content, as well as valuable toolkits and resource compendiums. If you are a paid subscriber, I truly appreciate the support and will work hard to share strategies, resources, and tools worthy of your financial commitment.
