Book publicity pitch letter

Dec 31, 2018 creating a book marketing and publicity plan is necessary for all authors, whether your publisher is a traditional house or youre trying to selfpublish. If you pitch takes up the whole three minutes, the agent or editor cannot ask you any questions. A media pitch is a brief note typically an email or letter that explains. Book publicity expert scott manning discusses the basics of book publicity, what you should include in a press kit, and when to start a book publicity campaign. In the pitch letters case, it may be an account an advertising agency has coveted for far too long. In order to get a traditional publishing deal, you must first usually get an agent. The letter of agreement will outline the details of your publicity campaign. You have one page and 300 words or less to woo a literary agent into falling in love with your story and then requesting your manuscript.

How to save money and do online book publicity yourself. How to write the perfect pitch letter to an agent curtis. Im publicity expert joan stewart, the publicity hound, and over the. Jul 24, 2017 regardless of the industry that youre in or represent, knowing how to effectively craft a pitch for the media is the most critical step to success in pr and content marketing. Be focused dont pitch more than one novel or memoir in your letter. Write a great elevator pitch for your book or novel jericho. Format with your address at the top of the page, right justified. A successful media pitch is typically a brief email or letter that convinces publications or hosts that you would make a great guest or subject for their platform. The book promotion professionals at iuniverse have established a few key marketing tactics and tips to help you develop a great strategy for promoting your book. No difference from a query letter, although query is used mostly for magazine articles, whereas pitches often. If you want to get booked for interviews, mind these dos and donts and you will be well on your way. The email pitch letter that got me publicity that you can. Theres a very specific standard for query letters that you should not deviate from, when possible.

The aim is to get them to read the book to get on to the next level. The two biggest mistakes in book publicity pitches. Dear name of editor, todays chicago woman understands the importance of organizational. Before you can sell your book, you need to market it. Ive been doing book publicity for 15 years and while the process evolves due to technology and changes in the publishing and media worlds, some things stay the same. Pitch letter template tips for writing pitch letters. Its an unfortunate aspect of the publishing business. How to create a book marketing and publicity campaign. Chuck says a pitch is basically your query letter memorized. In your letter, suggest other products for the roundup so the journalist sees the. Jun 20, 2017 a pitch needs to sell something, plain and simple. Both require book mailings to media, and those expenses. You can pitch story ideas related to your book to journalists who can give. Write your query letter before you write your next book.

But this is just the tip of your book publicity plan there is so much more a books launch team needs to do, according to this new post from publicist coleen hatrick. Creating an irresistible elevator pitch for your novel. Book publicity can be tricky for some authors, but it helps promote your. These short lettersusually no more than a pageattempt to. If you cant convey a compelling message in two paragraphs, well, then. This letter is short, sweet, and definitely to the point. There are agencies that specialize in book publicity, and there are agencies which do other kinds of pr and list book publicity as another pr service they provide. Blasting your radio pitch letter to every station youve ever heard of, or to all the big ones is a waste of everyones time. Write a better pitch letter, public relationspublicity article. Make sure you mention the readership the book is designed for, such as childrens picture book, young adult, adult nonfiction or fiction, etc. Get free publicity by learning how to write a media pitch letter. From name dropping to using vulgarity, our literary agents roundtable guests share their favorite pitch letters. How to write a winning book pitch write nonfiction now.

How to write a media pitch with examples pitching compelling story lines and sources are the crux of any pr strategy. You need time to have a conversation with the agent or acquisitions editor. How to create an effective book publicity plan the reedsy blog. A media pitch letter is a brief proposal addressed to editors containing an idea or article that you would like them to use in order to help you get free publicity. The impact of a publicity campaign on your book will depend on two major factors. An elevator pitch is the term given to any sales pitch that could, in theory, be delivered in the space of a short elevator ride. As a book publicist, jessica hatch is adept at digital and print outreach, bookstore event coordination, as well as tv and radio pitches.

A pitch letter sent to the wrong station and the wrong person at the station is wasted effort. If you know what your book is about and you know why someone should want to read your bookwhat benefits it will provide and why it is uniqueyou should be able to write something pithy in 50 words or less that describes your book perfectly. Individuals also use them to promote themselves as experts available for interviews. Your sixmonth timeline for successful book publicity. It will take you longer, and you will certainly spend many hours chasing opportunities, but youll save money. The pitch letter is similar to a sales letter in its purpose. It quickly and efficiently shows people that youre a player, not a dreamer. How to write a darn good query letter ny book editors. Her letter presents the companys distinctive market strategy, and she wisely addressed her pitch directly to the editor of sales and marketing. Pitch letter example back in may i sold kennedy fosters debut novel standfast to abby zidle at pocket books. You only have a few seconds to pitch your book to media and. Pitches are key components of the public relations strategy.

Dec 11, 2019 try this exercise and write your query letter before you write your next book to keep your manuscript focused and help you pitch it to agents and publishers. We agree that for a threeminute pitch session your pitch should only take you about 6090 seconds to say. Learning how to write a media pitch that sells both you and your story is an essential skill when it comes to garnering publicity for your book. Your sixmonth timeline for successful book publicity hatch. At the time i sold it there were several editors looking at the book. Get free publicity by learning how to write a media pitch. You are unequivocally the most tenacious and aggressive publicist in the business. The email pitch letter that got me publicity that you can copy. Book publicity how to write a media pitch the savvy book marketer. In the higher education digital marketing space, we leverage the expertise of professors from the programs that we partner with to help increase the schools visibility, student enrollment, thought leadership, and brand awareness. Book publicity tips from an industry veteran bookbaby blog. Saved me a ton of time and more importantly ensured that my first effort was a professional one. A publicist is also responsible for creating the press materials that accompany a book on its way into the hands of the media. For more information on missy and her other professional writing and editing services, please continue reading her bio is below.

Dan smith is ceo and founder of smith publicity, the most prolific book marketing. How to publicize and promote your book writers digest. A media pitch is a brief note typically an email or letter that explains why you would be a great guest on a specific show, a subject for a feature story or article in a magazine or newspaper. A query letter is a onepage letter sent to literary agents in an effort to get them excited about your book. As a firsttime author your build book buzz templates were an incredible value. For tips on researching radio talk shows, see this book publicity article. Writing a great pitch letter isnt brain surgery or rocket science. Send galleys with a pitch letter to key media, and requests. The best first line i ever had was anthony bourdain said that we should work. How to pitch radio and become a talk show guest build book buzz. Apr 12, 20 from name dropping to using vulgarity, our literary agents roundtable guests share their favorite pitch letters.

How to write a radio or tv pitch letter dog ear publishing. If you are committed to the process, you can do it yourself. Your pitch needs to convince the journalist that your idea is a good fit. Im just following up to see if you got the message i sent on oct. Once the letter of agreement is signed, work begins to get the word out about you and your book. We will help you achieve these goals by creating a customized marketing program that is uniquely tailored to your needs. It is important to write a good pitch letter in order to properly get your point across. Dont be slapdash, and check your grammar and spelling. Our specialty is to find creative ways to get your book or script through the noise to help make your project a success. The pitch is similar to an elevator pitch in length, but the message of the pitch is altered from general to more specific to the journalist or influencers interests. While many people only use press releases to get free publicity, learning how to write an effective pitch letter can dramatically increase the amount of publicity you get. Creating an effective and timely book publicity plan. But everyone who does pr cant just one day say they do book publicity. May 12, 2009 writing a great pitch letter isnt brain surgery or rocket science.

The elevator pitch is a summary of what it is about your book, and about you, that means your book will sell. If the person still does not respond to your pitch, move on to another outlet, reporter, or blogger who can help you accomplish your publicity goals. Authors who set up some personal market tactics to execute, whether standalone efforts or those in tandem with their publisher, sell more copies. If you have written a pitch letter like this, please consider a career in forensic accounting. Your book doesnt appeal to everyone really, it doesnt remember that section in writing your book. Jun 17, 2019 your emailed pitch is essentially a sales letter to the person youve identified as the editor of the section, the reporter who writes on that topic, the talk show producer, and so on. If the agent calls you in for a meeting, thats the time to talk about other projects, future work etc.

Of course, both are intertwined, since certain publicists will be better at selling certain kinds of stories than others. What is a pitch letter for a pitch letter is a story idea sent to a journalist or editor in the hopes of getting media coverage for a companys product or service. A media pitch is a short, concise email historically a letter or phone call to a journalist or influencer. If theres more flexibility in the desired publication date, you may indicate that you will follow up within a week. The difference between a press release and a pitch you need.

Snag book publicity with a roundup article the book designer. Show that you know that youre pitching an appropriate show. Do put time, thought and care into your pitch letter. The article below is the sixth of seven articles that give you a quick, wellrounded introduction to the fundamentals of getting media coverage for yourself, your book, your business or your cause. Oct 23, 2017 in this next part of the letter, provide your elevator pitch for the book. While a press release needs to have some of the most intriguing information about the book, you, and what you are trying to tell your readers, a pitch is a harder sell. Oct 26, 2012 writing a pitch shouldnt be too difficult after going through the steps ive outlined previously. Pitching to the media writing for strategic communication. Julie della cioppa, the publicist who wrote this letter, shows that she knows that inc. A letter or email sent to an editor or agent which details an idea for a magazine, newspaper, book or other publication, along with an attempt to sell this particular idea, along with yourself as the potential writer. The idea is that you might find yourself in the elevator with someone important who cant, for those twenty or thirty seconds, escape or deflect your attentions so you can use that time to deliver a sales pitch so utterly compelling that that person of. Here are some tangible tips and examples that will help you become a pr pitching pro in no time and write a persuasive media pitch. Oct 25, 2012 a good pitch tells what makes you and your book unique.