Getting newspaper coverage Off the book pages

 

by Marilyn and Tom Ross

 

Did you know there are 1,730 newspapers published daily in the United States? They have a combined circulation of nearly 62 million people. And reviews are only one way of using them.

 

Targeting Special Sections

Throughout the year, newspapers put together special supplements, which can be another bonanza. These are topic-specific: seniors, health, automobiles, gardening, college, investment, etc. Find out what's planned for your major daily.

 

"Lifestyle" or "Trends" sections, known in the old days as the "Women's Pages," are often a good bet. Other more specialized sections (Business, Real Estate, Sports) may also welcome you, depending on the subject of your book. Frankly, you're usually better off in special sections. It takes a true book-lover to digest the book review pages, but all kinds of folks read the other sections. Gardeners, for instance, will have their noses buried (no pun intended) in the gardening section but would seldom discover your book about organic gardening if it were only discussed in the book pages.

 

Let's say you have a guide to child raising. Every major newspaper has an education writer or editor. Articles in this section are read by both parents and teachers. David Cole suggests you target the papers with circulations over 100,000 (there will probably be about 100 of them) and send a series of short 300-word articles extracted from your book for one-time use. Make sure you include "how-to" tips and provide illustrations if possible.

 

Surely you have looked with awe and maybe envy at full-page spreads about authors and their books, complete with numerous photographs. Worth a lot? Bet your sweet bippy it is! Don't buy into the idea that only famous best-selling authors get that kind of coverage. 'Tain't so.

 

William Zimmerman would testify to that. He's had spreads in the Washington Post,  Business Week, and the New York Times. Zimmerman, founder of Guarionex Press, which published his How to Tape Instant Biographies, comments, "I've shown how you can leverage no money and gain a lot of national attention and sales." The Times feature about him prompted two thousand inquiries replete with countless orders for his book.

 

The successful author-publisher has staying power. Tenacity. Persistence. Bill Gordon, author of The Ultimate Hollywood Tour Book, pitched no less than thirteen different reporters at the Los Angeles Times before he got one to do a story. It first appeared in the Orange County section . . . then hit all the metro pages a week later.

 

Print media offers the enterprising publisher a bumper crop of opportunities for promotion. Don't ignore the rich harvest small independent newspapers can provide. They, too, can be of assistance to your campaign. Alert them to newsworthy activities. Press releases to hometown papers about author tours filter into coverage in columns or feature stories. Consider contacting the media in any town where you've previously lived.

 

Don't forget the wire services. Should you be fortunate enough to lock into one of them, your book could skyrocket to stardom virtually overnight. If you live in a major city, check the phone book for local editorial offices. Otherwise, contact the Associated Press (AP) at 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10020, phone 212-621-1500; United Press International (UPI) at 1510 H Street, NW Washington, DC 20005, phone 202-898-8000; and Reuters at 3 Times Square, 18^th Floor, New York, NY 10036, phone 646-223-4300.

 

Hitchhike on Current News

One of the best ways to get into the news is to hitchhike with another item of current interest. When President Bush put Linda Chavez up for Secretary of Labor, the controversy heated up when it came out she'd had an illegal alien living in her home, doing miscellaneous chores, and had given the woman money. Kathy Fitzgerald Sherman, author of A Housekeeper Is Cheaper Than a Divorce: Why You CAN Afford to Hire Help and How to Get It jumped on this issue.

 

Perhaps your book solves a problem that has just hit the headlines. Such was the case of one clever author who had written a book on how to stop snoring. One day his newspaper vigil uncovered an obscure two-liner about a pending divorce. It seems the poor harried wife could no longer tolerate her snoring spouse. A long-distance call to the presiding judge, a couple of bottles of booze, and an overnighted book resulted in a front-page spread with pictures. The judge felt this book could save the marriage. Picked up by the wire services, the word spread swiftly; and the book went into four printings.

 

This is one story of many that confirm the value of a "news peg" and the hitchhiking principle. With a bit of inventive brainstorming, we bet you can think of lots of ways to link your book with news items. Don't overlook writing an op-ed column as a vehicle for exposure either.

 

When something breaks in your topic area, immediately contact key media personnel. You want to establish yourself as a subject matter expert. While the media may not use you this time, chances are you'll eventually get ink and air time if you're persistent about staying visible when things occur in your area of expertise.

 

To link with a breaking news story, you, of course, have to know about it. If you're serious about attracting more than your share of print, radio, TV, and Internet coverage, you must read the newspaper first thing every morning. I (Marilyn) have bookmarked the home page for the Washington Post. You can read it free online by going to www.washingtonpost.com. (And if you want to start your day with a chuckle, go to www.borowitzreport.com, where a spoof news story mocks the real thing.)

 

Tie Into Special Dates

To add verve and flair to your promotional campaign, you might consult Chase's Calendar of Events to see if there is a special day, week, or month you can hitchhike with. This directory offers over 700 pages of imaginative PR angles. It is a day-by-day resource of holidays; historical anniversaries; fairs and festivals; and special days, weeks, and months. It lists more than 12,000 entries of national or broad regional interest. Besides normal contact info, this hefty edition also contains e-mail addresses and Web sites—and is fully indexed by category and locale. It's a great reference for tagging your promotions to a special time, and it's also available on the Internet.

 

Got a book on mystery writing? Don't overlook August 13th. That's the birthday of Alfred Hitchcock—and that's just the sort of kooky thing the wire services pick up. Have you written a career guide for nurses? Perhaps you can tie in with National Nurses Week in May.

 

Greg Godek, who wrote and self-published 1001 Ways to Be Romantic and its sequel, 1001 More Ways to Be Romantic, uses the angle of "Romance Awareness Month" (August) to his advantage. He appeared on Donahue to conduct a romance seminar—and pushed his books onto Walden's and Ingram's bestseller lists. In 2001, he was a guest on the Today show. Of course, he always has a busy January and February because he ties his books in with Valentine's Day celebrations. It definitely works.

 

And Nolo Press, an assertive California publisher of legal self-help books, laid down the law by combining with KFI radio to sponsor "L.A. Law Day." The event drew more than 3,000 people to hear several Nolo authors speak on legal issues. In addition to local media coverage, the event garnered them a photo and blurb in PW—thus drawing bookstore attention to their imprint.

 

Create an "Available for Interview" Sheet

Plan your initial publicity for the print media to coincide with the publication date of your book. Let the press know you will be available for interviews during this period of time. Oh yes, there is definitely a technique for letting the press know. Here is one that has proven extremely successful for us. Create an "Available for Interview" announcement. This needs to be a power-packed fact sheet about the book and the author. Ideally, this package should go out under a name other than your own, such as your pseudonym. This makes it more credible when the book and author are lauded.

 

Take a look at the example. Now start brainstorming. Focus clearly on your book's premise. Think of as many short punchy zingers about the book as possible. Cover the "what" and "why" thoroughly. Boil down your ideas, combining and eliminating, until you have four or five strong points. Don't forget the material on your book cover as a resource.

 

Now let's work on promoting the author. You're an expert—you wrote the book—so establish that fact beyond doubt. As you can see, half of the grabbers about the author feature qualifications and credits. Give a strong logical reason why the author wrote this book, stressing his or her credibility for tackling this subject. Go through the same exercise for pruning your "about the author" comments into their most productive form as you did for the book. Brainstorm, write a bunch, cut, condense, improve—until three or four emerge as the pick of the crop.

 

This kind of media approach, which included a news release and the dust jacket promotion piece, produced as many as seven interviews in one day during our Creative Loafing tour. That was almost too much, even for Marilyn. We suggest that four or five per day produce less stress and better interviews.

 

Be sure to get the Available for Interview material to editors in plenty of time to accommodate their scheduling. (And indicate specific dates you are available even if it's only going to your hometown paper.) For newspapers and weekly magazines allow four to six weeks minimum. Four to six months is a normal lead time for monthly magazines. Allow a couple of weeks for your information to filter down to the proper desk, then follow up by phone. Find out if the package was received and the reaction. In the case of newspapers, if the recipient doesn't exhibit much enthusiasm, ask if he or she could suggest a different reporter in another department who might find the information more appropriate. Then you can contact the new person, say that so-and-so suggested you call, and go into your spiel. Interested editors will request a copy of your book.

 

Of course, it doesn't end there. Smaller community newspapers dot every urban area, targeting information to those in the community they serve. Their readers are usually very loyal. And there's a profusion of weekly newspapers published in small towns as well. Also don't overlook the college press. These bright young reporters may give you valuable space if your message fits their audience. What an overall windfall for the assertive promoter!

 

 

 

© Copyright 2005 Marilyn Ross

 

Marilyn and Tom Ross are the coauthors of 13 books including the best-selling Complete Guide to Self-Publishing and the award-winning Jump Start Your Book Sales. Through phone consultations and ongoing coaching/mentoring, Marilyn empowers authors and self-publishers to realize their dreams. She can be reached at 720-344-4388 or Sue@SelfPublishingResources.com. Visit http://www.SelfPublishingResources.com for free meaty information on writing, self-publishing, and book marketing strategies.

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