Category: News

Writer’s Circle Speaker Series Recap: What Is a Brand & Where Can I Get One?

Posted on by Claire McKinney

Thanks to the Writers Circle for having me come in and talk about branding, publicity, and marketing with them! From the Writer’s Circle blog:

clairemckinney writer's circle

The idea of promoting my own literary work makes me want to hide under a blanket with a bag of leftover Halloween candy. Or maybe mint Oreos…, but you get the point.

Noted literary publicist Claire McKinney understands.

At a two-hour Writers Circle workshop she led on author branding and promotion last weekend, McKinney acknowledged this common reaction. “This is not something writers like to do. But in the current publishing environment, there’s a greater onus on individual authors to be involved in promoting themselves and their projects.”

Continue to the re-cap!!

Links Round Up, Week of 11/2

Posted on by CMPR

Happy Friday and National Novel Writing Month! Don’t forget to check out our latest blog post on Twitter tips. Check out what went on this week in marketing, pr and publishing!

For NaNoWriMo: 10 great books that were written in a month [Reading Room]

If that doesn’t help you get started, here’s everything you need to know about NaNoWriMo! [ABC]

Book review: Sara Goff’s I Always Cry at Weddings [USA Today]

Tips from a bookseller on selling your book [Publishers Weekly]

Self-publishing 101: Front & Back Matter [Writers Win]

Can self-published novels improve our industry? [Molly Greene]

Self-editing: 7 things to fix in your first edit of your book [Creative Penn]

Laura Hart McKinny talks about her new book [LA Talk Radio]

An interview with Sara Goff on I Always Cry at Weddings (plus a giveaway!) [Books a la Mode]

Amazon opens a new bookstore, Indiebound releases a ‘buy now’ button [Seattle Pi]

Star. Wars. [Time]

We love Eddie Redmayne, and of course we love Fantastic Beasts! [PopSugar]

Can having a podcast prepare you to write a book? [CopyBlogger]

Open Enrollment began this week-10 things you need to know! [Hafetz & Associates]

 

Social Media 101: Tips for Efficiently Using Twitter

Posted on by CMPR

Twitter logoTwitter is a social media website that can be used for more than just chatting with friend—it can be a marketing power tool. In our short-attention span generation, Twitter is perfect for getting your message out in small doses. With a 140 character limit, Twitter forces you to get to the point quickly, which in turn, pushes a user to be more creative in their approach.

Whether you’re a brand, author, musician, etc., Twitter is extremely valuable in sharing your vision, goals, and project samples. The following are some tips to effectively use Twitter to get the word out about your product, services, and message.

  1. Send informative and/or entertaining tweets. Unless the tweet teaches, notifies, or amuses a reader, they probably won’t be back to see what else you’re saying.
  2. Save some room for a hashtag. Twitter says: “People use the hashtag symbol (#) before a relevant keyword or phrase (no spaces) in their Tweet to categorize those Tweets and help them show more easily in Twitter Search. Clicking on a hashtagged word in any message shows you all other Tweets marked with that keyword. Hashtags can occur anywhere in the Tweet – at the beginning, middle, or end. Hashtagged words that become very popular are often Trending Topics.”
  3. Be current. Topics of tweets can be tied into holidays and current news. (Example: Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to express gratitude in children, etc.)
  4. Announce an important event. Tweets can be used to announce upcoming interviews, lectures, appearances, etc. Do you have a book signing coming up? Maybe a radio interview in the next few weeks? Use Twitter to let people know about your schedule.
  5. Share the wealth (or an article)! It’s a good idea to frequently repost or retweet articles, essays, tweets, etc. that fall in the topics of things you write about. This will provide a greater chance of people in your field to want to follow you on Twitter and also spreads the word much better about whatever topic/subject is being discussed. In addition, the more you retweet & repost, the better the chance that person may do the same for you.
  6. Use it as a writing tool. If you’re an author, posting short sentences from your book is a good way to tease interest from readers. If you have some really strong blurbs, those too should also be tweeted.
  7. Reach out to others. Commenting on others’ tweets is another way to build rapport with people who write about subjects in your field. This is also another way to possibly get more followers. So join in on the conversation and start meeting people!
  8. Show the love! Everyone enjoys seeing a tweet of theirs get a favorite, and people will be more than willing to reciprocate.

These are just some quick tips for effectively using the social media tool. Practice makes perfect, so be sure to apply these tips whenever you use Twitter.

Have your own tips to share? Tweet us at @McKinneyPR!

Public Relations 101: Why are bloggers important for PR outreach?

Posted on by Keely Flanagan

bloggers and blogging

If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that there are a lot of bloggers. Google the term “book bloggers” and you’ll ping a million results. Google “book review bloggers” and you’ll ping a million more search results. Researching and sifting through blogs and their contact information is a time consuming process, but they are an important part of a PR campaign.

Why are bloggers so necessary to publicists as part of their outreach? More importantly, why are they so necessary for an an author looking to establish their brand?

They have their own fan base. Each blog has a built-in audience that comes with it, whether it is five people or five thousand. If you’re looking to have your chick lit novel reviewed, you’ll want to check out some chick lit reviewers—their fans may be your future fans, too.

They may review indie or self published authors. As an indie author, it’s difficult to get yourself reviewed in newspapers like the New York Times. Book review bloggers can give you the support you need, especially if they decide to favorably review your novel. Always respect a blog’s review policy—many clearly state that they do not review independently published titles. You will find bloggers that are open to reviewing indie authors, but you must ensure that the book is professionally edited before deciding to contact a reviewer—you don’t want to find a scathing review of your novel’s numerous spelling and grammatical errors.

They provide you with an online presence. A social media presence is one thing, but a presence on the rest of the web is just as important. Because blogging equals SEO, tagging, categories, and all that great online marketing jargon, reviews of your book online will make you a more searchable term—and people Googling your name will see that you and your book exist.

They have their own networks. More than ever, bloggers are an important tool for publishers. This summer, Book Expo America even had a networking conference for bloggers with several seminars related to the profession. Attending a blogger networking event in your area could lead to a relationship with someone who could have interest in your future career as a writer!

They’re a supportive medium. A blogger who has their own book review site is going to be someone who supports books. Why wouldn’t you want to be friendly with a crowd that loves reading just as much as you do?

Are you an author who utilizes bloggers and blog tours, and do you find those parts of your campaign successful? Tweet us your insight at @MCKINNEYPR!

When the News Cycle Won’t Stop, Can’t Stop

Posted on by Keely Flanagan

hurricane joaquin news cycleSometimes the news cycle catches a wave and rides it out all the way to shore, only to hop onto another one without a breather. The past few weeks has been non-stop breaking news: the Papal Visit received consistent news coverage; John Boehner announced that he was stepping down; and Hurricane Joaquin drove everyone crazy on whether or not it will make landfall in the US. It feels like the news stations have been in a frenzy jumping from one topic to another without giving any of us a break.

When everyone’s excitedly obsessing over the same thing it can certainly feel like no one’s listening to what you have to say. What can you do to make people pay attention to you when everyone’s eyes and ears are glued to a forecast map of a category 4 hurricane?

Ride the wave: Last year when Dallas had a case of Ebola, we were working with a book on conspiracy theories. So we pitched media about Ebola conspiracy theories and the author was interviewed for an article in Dallas Morning News. Instead of fighting against the current, we went with it and it brought us some great coverage.

Join the conversation: If you have a blog and have an opinion on a current event, why not write about it? Post to social media accounts, send to other blogs or websites, and use hashtags to gain more exposure. Were you there in Philly when the #Pope visited? Do you think Hurricane #Joaquin will be the next Superstorm Sandy? You never know who might agree and retweet or use what you have to say.

Prepare to launch: There’s no point stressing over the fact that no one is getting back to you. Relax a bit and prepare for the next week, so that you’re ready to go once the roar dies down and media outlets are in need of something else to talk about.  Remember, the news cycle moves fast: one week we’re panicking about Ebola and rushing to the pharmacy for Emergen-C and surgeon masks, the next we’re forgetting our hand sanitizer at home.

Even though it may feel like the world has stopped when a hurricane and nor’easter are making headlines, there’s always an incentive to keep going. You just have to look for it.