What I Wish I’d Known is a regular series where we ask some of our favourite people in the book industry to reflect on their careers. In this instalment, publishing workers share some of the unexpected and useful things they’ve learned along the way about publicity.
Top left to right: Bella Breden, Julia Flaster, Debbie McInnes, Emily Lighezzolo, Tace Kelly, Maddy Corbel, Zoë Victoria and Holly Hendry-Saunders.
Bella Breden, Allen & Unwin
Communication is key! The job is far more seamless when there are open lines of communication. I have found the more I know my authors—their preferences, their backstory, their reason for publishing—the better I am at pitching their work. The building of trust between one another will only be mutually beneficial. If you’re not sure of the process in the lead-up to publication, the differences between marketing and publicity or what your publicist actually does, ask us!
My best advice is to use your inquisitive nature. Ask your PR lots of questions from the offset and continually, and above all trust the process and try not to take it personally when you don’t get a story up with the media. Publicists do a lot of what I call ‘shadow work’. Our best work is often behind the scenes. Be it customising media angles, the back and forth of interview timings, talking points, the organisation of touring and events. Most of their planning, pitching and scheduling won’t be work you’ll be able to see.
Maddy Corbel, Text Publishing
I feel so lucky to be a publicist, and the thing I wish I’d known years ago is how much joy I could get from promoting an author and their story. The biggest challenge, I think, is knowing when enough is enough. With so much love for every book and author comes an incredible sense of pressure. This is exciting when you start brainstorming a campaign, but quickly becomes overwhelming if you don’t have a clear list of goals. Authors’ publicity teams care deeply about the book, but the process must be a finite one: I wish more authors knew that it’s completely normal to have a few busy weeks followed by almost nothing at all.
A lot of publicity is throwing passionate pitches at the wall and hoping they stick—but there are a few things you can do as an author to promote your own books. Experiment with social media, try writing a Substack or newsletter, attend literary events and introduce yourself to other authors. It’s an exciting industry—if you’re open and willing to get stuck in, there are lots of wonderful ways to get your book into the hands of readers.
Julia Flaster, Debris Magazine
One of the biggest challenges is realising that creating a magazine isn’t just about making it, it’s also about getting it seen and selling it. Early on, I was focused on supporting writers and paying everyone appropriately. That meant going after grants, and I guess because the quality of the publication was good, we were successful. It would cover costs, and selling the magazines wasn’t a main priority. But sustaining a publication means actively pushing it out to audiences beyond our friends and family.
We’ve just released our latest issue, Debris Magazine Issue 4: Illuminated Manuscript. This time, we’ve expanded publicity beyond social media, including large street posters and radio advertisements. We’ve also encouraged authors to share their work, which can be difficult when you’re asking writers to promote without extra pay. The easier you make it for contributors to share, the more likely they are to do so, like providing ready-to-go social media posts.
Holly Hendry-Saunders, Melbourne University Publishing
I could never have imagined just how unpredictable the work of a publicist is. It makes the days go fast and there’s plenty of adrenaline on the job, but because of the capriciousness of the media and news cycle, managing author expectations can be a real challenge. I can plan a campaign meticulously, but nothing is ever guaranteed.
I recently had a national TV program planning a segment on one of my books, one of the biggest measurable successes for a publicity campaign, and after weeks of communication with producers and numerous phone calls, a date was slated for it to air. When it came time for the pre-recorded interview, the author was unwell. Due to TV production deadlines, there was no chance to reschedule, and all the work that had been put in was fruitless, and of course everyone was disappointed. The producer involved told me, ‘It often takes a miracle for these things to happen.’
As I work on largely non-fiction titles at MUP, producers and journalists often seek current stories that align with the zeitgeist. A book may hold literary or scholarly merit but won’t receive the attention it deserves due to it being drowned out by more topical books. In saying that, I’ve seen countless books serendipitously align with cultural moments. We published The Matilda Effect by Fiona Crawford last May, ahead of the Women’s World Cup. Not even FIFA officials could have predicted the phenomenon of ‘Matilda Mania’ and subsequent media interest in a team that, only a few months prior, was mostly unheard of. Needless to say, it was our most successful campaign of the year.
Tace Kelly, Affirm Press
Publicists are super helpful and organised, but we aren’t personal assistants. We are always working on multiple campaigns, often working with over ten authors (and illustrators) at once. We’re only human and there are only so many hours in a workday.
Since I started working as a publicist, the media landscape has changed significantly. There are fewer journalists in traditional news outlets covering books. On the other hand, there has been a rapid rise in other forms of book coverage, including podcasts and social media. For debut authors and illustrators, it’s a good way to build an audience and find new readers, but it also really depends on how they use it. Some advice from Julia Kathro (the marketing manager at Affirm Press) is to pick one platform to focus your energy on and be yourself! With more and more authors having a social media presence—especially on Instagram—it can be great for building and fostering connections to readers, writers and creators but can also lead to competitiveness that may not help an author’s self-esteem.
It’s also great to connect with local booksellers. But with so many books coming out, booksellers on the shop floor may not be across every single book that is ordered for the store. So don’t go into bookstores to ask if they have your book without introducing yourself first. I was a bookseller for over ten years, and this happened quite a lot. Introduce yourself and your book—and if they have copies, they might even like you to sign them. Some unusual advice: send a copy to your English teachers saying some nice words about them (especially if they influenced your writing or creative career). They will almost definitely be in a book club or will be so grateful that they will tell at least ten people. Word of mouth is still one of the best forms of publicity.
Lastly, remember that it’s incredibly hard to get published in Australia. You’re one of the lucky few! That’s fantastic! Trust the process. Publishers are full of incredible, hardworking book nerds (even as the pay is notoriously low)—we are experts that are doing all we can to make your book be successful.
Emily Lighezzolo, Hachette
I came into publicity with rose-coloured glasses, having a vision of publicists running around writers’ festivals armed with Post-it notes and lattes. I wish I’d known that media can be a game of chance sometimes and even the best publicists have their perfectly crafted publicity towers crumbled by unforeseen circumstances—incoming headlines, advertising space, tech issues, ghosting…the list goes on. Sometimes you just have to release a breath and remind yourself, Things aren’t always in my control, and that’s okay.
A publicity role has several hats—coach, scheduler, events manager, media liaison, communicator, travel agent, confidante. Often you have one of the closest relationships with authors in the publishing house and this is the biggest perk of the job. Some beautiful relationships are formed on the long roads between events. Every time you see a reader excited to meet their admired author, you’re reminded why you do this.
I also wish I’d known that even though Australia’s arts media landscape appears to be shrinking, there are still true champions of books shouting in that space. They’re the best!
Debbie McInnes, Dmcprmedia
I have worked in publishing and publicity for over thirty years, and what I wish I had known starting out is how tricky it can be to manage the expectations of publishers and authors around publicity for books. The media landscape continues to change every day and it’s near impossible to guarantee coverage. We have lost so many quality journalists, particularly in the last few years, and it can be challenging for those not working with the media to understand that we don’t have as many outlets as we have had in the past.
Social media is only important if the author is taking time to grow and sustain a following. It is an incredible tool, but it is not for everyone. There are many other ways to reach readers, particularly for older demographics. I like to work collaboratively with the authors whose books we promote, as we are a team working together to achieve the best media campaign possible. It’s important for both the publicist and author to have a clear understanding of who the target audience is and, therefore, who the key media targets are. Working with such a diverse range of talent never ceases to keep me on my toes—from Oliver Saks, Kathy Lette, Buzz Aldrin, Morris Gleitzman, Jackie Collins, Steve Biddulph, Chris Masters—and everyone has a story, and it’s a privilege to be involved in helping them share it with the world.
Zoë Victoria, Ultimo Press
When I started working in publishing, I didn’t realise that being a publicist means you’re selling more than just the book, you’re selling an author too. Building a community of loyal readers around an author and their brand is vital to the success of a campaign. Just over a year in publishing has taught me that the most rewarding part of the job is working collaboratively with authors to create moments where that community shows up to embrace the book that they’ve worked so hard on.
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