Industry Interviews Phenix & Phenix Literary Publicists Part 2 - Tolly Moseley and Amy Currie

Phenix & Phenix Literary Publicists is a full-service literary publicity firm that specializes in serving the unique publicity needs of authors and major publishing houses. Founded in 1994, Phenix & Phenix has publicized more than 27 best sellers and has implemented successful publicity campaigns for books across every major genre.

From front-list releases at top publishing houses to novels by first-time authors, our firm was founded on the belief that books change lives, and we seek to represent only those titles with the potential to make a positive impact on society. For queries, please visit our website at phenixpublicity.com, or check out our blog with regular tips for authors and literary publicists: phenixpublicity.blogspot.com .

Do you see a measurable difference in book success between an author who lets the house publicity department handle the details of promotion vs. an author who works to make their book known? Explain.

TM: I typically see a tremendous difference when an author is proactive about hosting book signings, speaking engagements, book festivals, etc. It is always to an author's advantage to do events where they have a local hook and let as many people know in advance as possible. For example, a St. Martin's Press author recently invited our whole company to his book signing at a local bookstore. Even though we don't know him, a few of us attended because we got advance notice, and his book sounds really interesting! That was very clever on his part: finding out who the book publicists are in this city, and then inviting every last one of them.

It's important for authors to remember that in-house publicity departments will work as hard as they can, but they've also got a zillion things on their plate—including other authors to take care of. You only have yourself. It never hurts to arrange live appearances where you know you'll have friends, family, alums, etc., to come out to support you.

That being said, an author who wants to make their book known to the media might have a tougher time getting journalists/producers’ attention if they're a first-time author with no platform. The media is typically more comfortable working through a third party, such as a publicist, to set up appearances and interviews.

Are there any personal touches that you can recommend to authors who might be very introverted and begin palpitating at the thought of crowds?
TM: I've found that many authors are introverted, so those types certainly aren't alone! At our company, we host media training sessions, where authors can practice honing their message with professionals. They also develop solid sound bites that they can pull out whenever they need them. This in turn helps many authors not just with their media interviews, but with their book events as well.

If you don't have the opportunity to attend a media training session like this one, though, here's a tip: Host book readings for your first few events. That way, you don't have to be cleverly off-the-cuff in front of a bunch of people, like with a Q&A session. You're literally just reading your own writing. Also, write out a couple of sharp observations about current events that tie into your book, and keep those in your pocket. If you're pressed for lively small talk, or if you really are hosting a Q&A, it'll help you feel more prepared if you've got some witty "asides" already planned.

What kind of results do you see from Internet promotion vs. traditional?

TM: The Internet does reach a younger market. I'm working on a YA sci-fi book right down written by a teenager, Isamu Fukui, and his readers are an extremely active online community: they've written a ton of book reviews about his book already and participate heavily on his homepage forum. So if you're writing for a younger crowd, the Internet is one of the first places you should go.

However, I think a good dose of Internet publicity can truly help everyone, since journalists/producers use Google every single day. If your name and book comes up on a search, you might very well be the source they contact for a story. And, keep in mind that many traditional media outlets have an online extension: magazines that post issues online, radio shows that keep podcasts online, etc. If you get a story on a heavily trafficked site, it might be "syndicated" around the web: one of my personal finance authors did an interview with Bankrate.com, and that story got picked up by Yahoo! Finance, MSN Money, and FOX Business. I booked that interview in 2007, and it's still popping up on different sites! That's the great thing about the Internet: stories have longer staying power than radio, or even TV, so a key web booking can generate more buzz than some of the more traditional outlets.

Describe today's reader based on your observations.

TM: That's a tough question! Today's reading audience is so incredibly diverse: what appeals to the minivan mom wiping baby food off her forehead will be totally different from the golf-playing boomer who's loving retirement. In general, though, I would say the fiction books that do well tend to speak to current, collective concerns. Here are a few examples: Should successful women leave the workforce to raise their children? Is the public school system working for Gen Y? What are the long-term effects of the War in Iraq? All of these questions relate to books I'm currently working on, and all have been picked up by large New York publishers.

If you're not a fiction writer, the options are endless. News-you-can-use books like finance advice, diet / cook-books, etc., tend have great publicity opportunities because they provide easy excerpts for print and web. Chauncey Mabe at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel posted a great article recently (March 2008) about the difference between good and bad self-help books: good ones offer solid pointers, tips, grounding in well-known philosophies and research, while bad ones offer generic, motivational platitudes. If you're a self-help writer, it really pays to bolster your work with solid research.

What changes have you noticed in publishing recently? Do you find these changes good or not so good?

AC: Everything is going digital! Whether it’s online retailers, author blog tours or the new Amazon.com Kindle portable reading device, the publishing industry is relying more on the Internet and digital technology every day. This is why it’s so important for authors to establish a web presence as part of their book’s publicity campaign—more and more people are going online to search for book recommendations, to discuss their favorite books and also to purchase them. In fact, a recent consumer survey cited in Publishers Weekly found that online booksellers could become the largest channel for book sales by 2009.

We recommend that authors not only set up a web site, but also start blogging and include as much interactive media on their sites as possible, including links to any media coverage, video clips and podcasts. Some authors I’ve worked with in the past really had the right idea in creating their web presence. One maintained a message board on her site and responded to readers’ questions, creating an online fan base for her books. She also made sure to post information for any local book signings she was hosting and also posted pictures from these events. Another author actually blogged as the main character in his novel, which was a great way to extend his book’s content onto the web.

What one or two things could you share with Novel Journey readers that might surprise them regarding book promotion?

AC: I think for many new authors, it’s surprising that the media isn’t necessarily clamoring to interview you about your book, or to review your novel. This isn’t to say that your book isn’t a fantastic piece of work that everyone is certain to enjoy. But book review sections in daily newspapers are disappearing fast, and the fact that you wrote a book alone isn’t exactly breaking news. This is where creative publicity comes in.

A big part of a publicist’s job is brainstorming newsworthy angles that will make an author a useful resource to the media. You’ve written a novel about a homeless Iraq veteran? Your publicist may pitch you as an expert source to discuss the epidemic of homeless soldiers in America today. Or, perhaps your book is a science fiction novel about aliens taking over the U.S. government—you would be a great source to discuss the recent resurgence of sci-fi entertainment in popular culture. In these instances, you would be credentialed as “author of…,” getting your novel coverage, even if the entire article or interview segment isn’t all about your book. This may be the most surprising thing about book publicity: it often isn’t about the book.

Personally, what are your favorite genres? Favorite books or authors?

AC: I’m personally a big fan of all kinds of fiction. My favorites include J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and his Lord of the Rings trilogy, Rebecca and Frenchman’s Creek by Daphne de Maurier, and Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility. My all-time favorite, however, is a holdover from childhood—A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle.

If you could say one thing to aspiring authors what would it be?

AC: I would encourage new authors to tell the story they want to tell with their book, while also looking ahead to its marketability if they truly want it to be a widely read success.

What about your own personal story would make a compelling news item for a feature or credential you to discuss a certain subject? What are you willing to do to support your book leading up to its pub date—hire a publicist, set up a book tour, host speaking engagements, write contributed articles or op-eds? If you’re not willing to do these things, you may find it difficult to get your book into the hands of readers. In today’s publishing world, it isn’t always enough to tell a good story—writing and publishing a successful book takes a lot of publicity and marketing savvy as well.