Radio

Recently, I attended a media/publicist meet-and-greet. Both media and publicists were invited to prepare a short speech in advance. One man, a radio host, stood up and said something to the effect of, "I'm going to share with you three things NOT to say or do on radio. Please, please, please, share with your authors what I'm about to tell you."

So for this post, instead of offering advice on what to do, I'm going to tell you what radio hosts dread. Here's basically what he said:

1.) Please make sure they do not ask me on air if I've read their book. Producers and hosts are inundated with work. Generally, it was the pitch that interested them, they have a Q&A, and they are going to wing it from there. They expect you to be able to hold your end of the interview and answer their questions about your work. (However, there are some that will not promote the book until they personally know what it says cover to cover. Yet even then, I suggest not asking them this question.)

2.) Please have them answer the questions. A few weeks ago I talked about how to pitch. In that post, I made up a book about an earthquake, then made up a pitch about the hidden dangers the author uncovered in his research. If a producer wanted to feature that author—it would be because he thinks his audience will be fascinated to learn about the hidden dangers.

Imagine if the host says to the author, "So tell me about hidden gas pockets that could cause a city to sink underground during an earthquake," and the author says, "You know, in my new book I talk about these dangers, and I think every reader should buy my book to understand them. In fact, the hero of my book faces these dangers and at one point has to make the choice between rescuing his girlfriend or his dog. It's utter chaos everywhere. Everyone who has read it loved the fast paced action." ---How would you feel as that producer? They just opened up their program, giving an author publicity, and instead of entertaining their audience, the author has turned the show into an infomercial.

You will get the chance to talk about your book. Some hosts will even interrupt the program multiple times to say, "Were talking with [author's name] and his new book, [book's name.] It's published by [publisher's name.]

If the audience finds themselves absorbed in the interview, they naturally will become interested in the book. More so than if they felt the author came on and tried to sell them something.


3.) Please have your authors keep their answers under 3 minutes in length. At first, I found that request odd—after all, haven't we all heard that it's really the author that is leading the interview? However, since hearing this advice, I've noticed that some interviewees can start on a tangent and keep going—and going—and going.

The media is looking to entertain their audience. This is also in your best interest. Pay attention to your host. If he tries to ask you a question or break in, and please don't cut him off.

And there you have it. As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Upcoming, we have a podcast with an image coach and an amazing new author. Hope you guys are having a great week.