If you’re a writer and have begun, are halfway through, or are ready to launch your book into the world, it’s never too early to start your publicity plan. These days, even if you have a publisher or an agent in hand, there is rarely a marketing team to help you get the word out.
Fortunately, published authors Kate Feiffer and Elisa Speranza are offering a two-part online workshop to help you navigate the wild world of publicity on Saturday, Feb. 8, and Sunday, Feb. 9. The Literary Arts program at Featherstone Center for the Arts is presenting “Your Book Is Not Going to Sell Itself: Planning and Executing a Book Publicity Strategy.” This interactive workshop is relevant to all genres, whether you are going the traditional route or are self-publishing. Feiffer and Speranza will help clarify the process of navigating book publicity, offering practical and creative advice to developing your book launch and marketing strategy.
The idea for the workshop originated with Feiffer, who as the event producer of the Vineyard’s annual Islanders Write event, which is put on by The MV Times, engaged Speranza last summer to conduct a workshop on the topic: “I thought the outreach Elisa did for her book ‘The Italian Prisoner’ was tremendous.” With the publication of her most recent book, “Morning Pages,” Feiffer felt she, too, had been in the trenches. “I learned a lot about what does and doesn’t work, so we thought this workshop would be fun.”
Speranza’s 30-year career in marketing, strategic communications, project management, and networking shaped her approach to publicizing “The Italian Prisoner.” “I realized my skills were transferable,” she says. “That’s part of our message: People have skills, networks, and experiences from other realms they can use to market their book.”
Feiffer also brings a wealth of experience from, as she puts it, having worked both sides of the fence. As an author, in addition to “Morning Pages,” she has published 11 highly acclaimed books for children, and is the artist and illustrator of the poem/parody “The Lamb Cycle.” She adds, “I’ve also worked as a television producer, publicist, and event organizer in the literary world, which has built up useful information. And my approach is a creative way of thinking about things.”
During the workshop, participants will establish goals, identify their audience, hone their pitch, develop a publicity plan, and learn the tools to help them. Speranza explains, “What we want to do is to demystify things — help break it down into practical, actionable steps so participants can put their plan together right now.” One small but important example is having a mailing list. Speranza says, “People say, ‘Well, I don’t have a mailing list.’ I ask, ‘Did you ever send a Christmas card? If so, you have one.’ There are things that first-time authors don’t necessarily think about.”
Before the workshop, participants will submit a brief paragraph describing their project and a writing-related bio. Feiffer and Speranza will share information throughout the two sessions, and participants will engage in interactive exercises.
Speranza reflects, “Publishing is a business. I think writers sometimes don’t like to think about that. They like to think about the art and romance of it. That’s fine, but if you want somebody to read your book, they must first know about it.”
Feiffer adds, “If you’ve started your book, it’s time to start thinking about this. You don’t have to have finished it to jump in. If you’ve started one, join us. It can be overwhelming and stressful, but it can also be fun.”
“Your Book Is Not Going to Sell Itself: Planning and Executing a Book Publicity Strategy,” with Kate Feiffer and Elisa Speranza, will take place online on Saturday, Feb. 8, and Sunday, Feb. 9, from 2 pm to 3:30 pm Eastern Standard Time. Register at featherstoneart.org/writingworkshops. For more information about the facilitators, visit Kate Feiffer at katefeiffer.com and Elisa Speranza at elisamariesperanza.com.
This post was originally published on here
