Mind Body Spirit:
Transformation:
Christianity:
History:
Books For Writers:
Children & Young Adult:
Paganism:
Culture & Politics:
In this section:
The aim of publicity is to gain visibility, raise awareness, and create attention for your book in the minds of your target readership, using broadcast, print, and online media.
In short, people can't buy your books if they don't know about them!
Please note: Extra Publicity is not available to authors from the Zer0 Books imprint.
Longer periods of publicity are often more effective.
The more time the publicist can spend on the book, the easier it becomes to see what is working and what is not.
Extra Services are your chance to purchase a longer, more in-depth campaign for your book.
We offer five publicity services:
Our one base service where your publicist may not contact you directly:
And our Extra Services, which include a personal one-to-one relationship with your publicist:
Whether you purchase an Extra Service or not, every single title receives our Standard publicity package in which:
Your assigned publicist is listed on the Publishing Team page of your book. A month or two before your book is published, your publicist will, over 6 hours:
With every 500 copies sold, of which you will be notified, the publicist will do an extra round of publicity, widening or deepening the contacts. Please note: Sales made from discounted or free ebook promotions do not count towards the sales figure for triggering extra publicity.
During the Standard Publicity your publicist may not contact you directly.
For more information, see CHAPTER 9: YOUR PUBLICIST.
If you have any queries regarding your publicity at this stage, please use the Marketing & Publicity section of the Author’s forum.
BE YOUR OWN PUBLICIST
We encourage authors to be active themselves, using the resources and tools we provide. More in CHAPTER 9: BEING YOUR OWN PUBLICIST and CHAPTERS 11-15 of the Author Guide.
During Standard Publicity, your publicist may not contact you directly. If you buy an Extra Service, this relationship changes. Your publicist will contact you approximately three months from your Publication date to arrange a one-to-one consultation to discuss your marketing campaign. They will maintain a regular dialogue with you throughout, usually by email. They will take the lead on your publicity campaign, but always invite and accommodate your thoughts and opinions at every stage.
Three months out is a a good time to start time as production is normally completed and signed off, titles are usually available for pre-order on Amazon and B&N and review copies can be ordered in advance.
Sometimes your publicist will do most of the work themselves, and sometimes you will be needed to work with them, e.g. in writing blogs posts, or creating some social media material. Whatever you both decide, write down 8-10 interview talking points for your publicist to use in the promotion of your book. Interview talking points focus on the most interesting content in your book that you can share in an interview. Each point should only be a few sentences long. This list is used to “hook” the interviewer to having you as a guest. Upload your interview talking points as a Microsoft Word doc to the Articles section of the Publicity box on your Marketing page
In conjunction with yourself, your publicist will seek to place articles and interviews about and by you, in print and online.
Often, publications are more receptive to pitches from professional publicists as opposed to writers, but there are exceptions.
Your publicist will discuss with you the most appropriate way to do this and remain in dialogue with you while they
Your publicist will coordinate between radio show and author. If you have plans to visit other locations to publicize your book, then we will support this with contact to local radio hosts.
Reviews are an extremely important part of publicity.
Consumer reviews on Amazon are vital – they drive sales on the site more than mainstream media reviews. Click to read this article detailing why having 25 Amazon reviews left on publication is one of the best things you can do for your book.
Your publicist will
Your publicist will review your existing online presence (website, social media, blogging etc) and advise on ways to improve and augment it. They will
Your publicist will work with you to
There are many websites and marketing newsletters that advertise books and run giveaways designed to create buzz and excitement, and ultimately sales from your launch. We mention the most important ones in CHAPTER 13 ONLINE MARKETING SERVICES. Your publicist will work with you to
All Extra Services packages include:
Each title is unique, works for different markets, and plays to different author strengths.
Some, with special commercial potential, call for more publicity; some, which are more niche, not so much.
As a writer, you may feel confident in promoting your own work yourself, or you may know that you find publicity especially challenging and believe paying for extended help will be worthwhile.
With a longer campaign, your publicist can approach and chase a wider range of people, over longer periods, work more closely with you for longer, explore further strategies, and develop and refine your marketing and publicity strategy as the results come in. They have more time to support your own development and learning in marketing your own work. If publicity takes off, we are also placed to maximize it and 'ride the wave'.
Read carefully your reader reports and own comments and carefully consider the nature of your own book.
When all these factors are weighed, you can make the best decision.
In practice, we find the 30-hour campaign often the sweet spot – a significant amount of time to work with your publicist, combined with a competitive, affordable rate.
Payment terms: Payments are invoiced and will need to be settled before any extra publicity work begins. Once your payment is received, we will make a note of it on your Production page in Publisher Notes.
|
STANDARD |
BITE-SIZE 10 HOURS |
EXCLUSIVE 30 HOURS (BEST SELLER) |
DELUXE 60 HOURS |
VALET 90 HOURS |
|
✅Newsletter to trade, media and contacts |
✅Newsletter to trade, media and contacts |
✅Newsletter to trade, media and contacts |
✅Newsletter to trade, media and contacts |
✅Newsletter to trade, media and contacts |
|
✅Tailored email/press release |
✅Tailored email/press release |
✅Tailored email/press release |
✅Tailored email/press release |
✅Tailored email/press release |
|
✅Promotion on our blogs/social media |
✅Promotion on our blogs/social media |
✅Promotion on our blogs/social media |
✅Promotion on our blogs/social media |
✅Promotion on our blogs/social media |
|
✅All books receive this package, without exception, regardless of Extra Services purchased |
✅Close one-to-one work with your publicist |
✅Close one-to-one work with your publicist |
✅Close one-to-one work with your publicist |
✅Close one-to-one work with your publicist |
|
✅Guaranteed placement on NetGalley |
✅Guaranteed placement on NetGalley |
✅Guaranteed placement on NetGalley |
✅Guaranteed placement on NetGalley |
|
|
✅In-depth research on relevant publications, websites and blogs in your genre and location |
✅In-depth research on relevant publications, websites and blogs in your genre and location |
✅In-depth research on relevant publications, websites and blogs in your genre and location |
✅In-depth research on relevant publications, websites and blogs in your genre and location |
|
|
✅Giveaways |
✅Giveaways |
✅Giveaways |
✅Giveaways |
|
|
✅Online strategy development |
✅Online strategy development. |
✅Online strategy development |
✅Online strategy development |
|
|
✅Social media strategy development |
✅Social media strategy development |
✅Social media strategy development |
✅Social media strategy development |
|
|
✅Social media content generation |
✅Social media content generation |
✅Social media content generation |
✅Social media content generation |
|
|
✅Book promotion evaluation |
✅Book promotion evaluation |
✅Book promotion evaluation |
✅Book promotion evaluation |
|
|
✅Extra review copies |
✅Extra review copies |
✅Extra review copies |
✅Extra review copies |
|
|
✅ 10 additional hours of publicist time |
✅30 additional hours of publicist time |
✅60 additional hours of publicist time |
✅90 additional hours of publicist time |
|
|
✅£100 advertising budget |
✅£250 advertising budget |
✅£500 advertising budget |
✅£750 advertising budget |
|
|
✅£480 |
✅ £1200 |
✅£2280 |
✅ £3300 |
|
|
✅Competitive base price |
✅Best seller |
|
||
Go to Author Services – Extra Publicity in the Marketing And Publicity section of the author forum. Make a post there expressing your interest. Gavin Davies will be in touch to talk over your needs, your book, and which would be the best package and course of action. If you've been offered a contract that requires the purchase of an Extra Publicity Service, and you accept the contract, the office will be in touch via email within the next week with an invoice and payment details.
Once you are happy with your choice and ready to purchase your Extra Publicity, the office will send you an invoice. On receipt of payment, your publicist will be in touch to arrange a Skype or phone meeting where you can develop an in-depth plan of action.
If you have purchased your publicity well in advance, there may be a long period between the initial meeting and when the bulk of the work begins. Your publicist will always be available to you via email at this time. We believe the earlier you start thinking and working on publicity the better, and your publicist will recommend which areas of building your platform you can be working on during this time. In addition, make sure you have read from Chapter 9 onwards in the Author Guide – this lays out how we work at CI and offers lots of advice and useful information. Highlights include Author Branding (Chapter 9) and Social Media (Chapter 13).
Depending on the type and subject of the book, and availability, it will be allocated to one of these publicists, who will then be your main contact:
Gavin Davies
Gavin is CI's Marketing Manager and is also publisher of 6th Books. As G.L. Davies, he is the author of the bestselling A Most Haunted House and Haunted: Horror of Haverfordwest (published by 6th Books). He is the founder of the popular webcast The Paranormal Chronicles Network on YouTube, presenting shows with Dave Dominguez on a number of Paranormal subjects.
Sarah Beth-Watkins
Sarah has been a freelance writer for over 20 years, writing for magazines and websites on a wide range of topics. She has written over 300 articles for the web. She has four titles published with Compass Books and two with Chronos. She tutors creative writing and journalism courses for various colleges and community centres, and lives in County Wexford, Ireland.
Hi Gavin, I just wanted to say a very BIG thank you for all the interviews and podcasts that you have set up for me. I have really enjoyed the opportunity to share my story and get The Ripple of Awakening out there to more people. Thank you so much. Anne-Marie Marchant
Thank you Gavin Lee Davies for sharing. You are always supportive and helpful. So glad I chose CI as the publisher-- and because you have been an inspiring person/ bestselling author to keep people motivated to market their books. I don't know how you get it all done, so much work! Not all authors get this much support. I will not give up! Alyssa Couture
The Protector is the #1 hot new release in the History of Ireland on Amazon.com!. Gav – you’re an animal! You've booked 14 interviews and still counting!! Thank you.Tom Reilly
I am pleased about how things have gone. Gavin has done an excellent job securing podcast interviews, particularly the Coast-to-Coast interview which generated a lot of visibility.Melvin A. Felton, Jr.
I am gobsmacked at being top of new releases in the UK faith Amazon category, and 7 overall. Extraordinary. Thank you so much for all your efforts and enthusiasm on my behalf, Gavin, clearly these figures are very much down to your hard work! Chris Smith
Gavin is an Amazing Ambassador for representing me and my book "Where After". He has been an incredible support in securing the many interviews and talk show exposures over the past few months. For all of that and much more that he has done behind the scenes on my behalf – I am forever deeply grateful. I certainly struck Gold with him as my publicist. Mariel Ford Clarke
Gavin did an absolutely OUTSTANDING job with the publicity and sent out a lot of material to a lot of people. Nobody could have done more! Bridget Finklaire
Thanks to Gavin for his enthusiasm and hard work. He has been a support and an inspiration. Chris Keevil
Having been a publicist at Hampton Roads Publishing in the mid-1990s, I can appreciate how my publicist was able to hone magazine and newspaper pitches for my articles that got a great response. I had tried to approach them myself before he came on board with no results. This is the difference between self-publishing and mainstream publishing: the publishers are keyed into the marketplace and know who to approach and how to customize the pitch to the varied recipients. It is also helps if the material is well-written and market-friendly. John Nelson
I was extremely pleased at the professionalism, efficiency, speed, creativity and hard work of my publicist when he was hired to do extra publicity for my book,Earth: Astrology's Missing Planet, Reconnecting with Her Sacred Power. I have had over 30 years' experience in PR and promotion for an investment company and for non-profits as well as volunteer PR work for an international metaphysical organization. Despite my own experience, Ben taught me a lot and gave me new, fresh and up-to-the-minute ideas that I shall be able to use later in my own book promotion. I really can't speak more highly of Ben save to say he is highly intelligent and has a friendly, helpful, enthusiastic personality; he is also dedicated to new thought and body, mind, spirit. Chrissie Blaze
I can honestly say that my book achieved exposure levels that I could only dream about and this was because of what CI have to offer in the PR area. It was featured in many periodicals, newspapers, magazines and some publications that I had never heard of including the Union Jack Newspaper, America's only British newspaper. Furthermore my CI Publicist contacted me directly and in a very professional manner, about doing many radio interviews. It's one thing to have a book published but getting the word out there is absolutely key. The CI contacts list is exhaustive and covers every field, however diverse. Don't ever underestimate what they can do for you in this regard. That one interview, review or article could lead to so many further possibilities. In my case the possibilities became absolutely ridiculous. And then some. As a PR animal, with a passion for my work, I cannot recommend this service strongly enough. Authors love talking about their books. Let CI help you with that. Tom Reilly
As a former journalist, editor and PR manager, I'm always a little bit unsure of what to expect from other publicity people - we all have our preferred ways of working and, sometimes, it can be a bit tricky to find the right energy balance and learn from/work with each other. With Moon Books, this was absolutely not an issue. The publicist was knowledgeable, respectful, wonderfully encouraging, and the connection between Moon Books' and my own PR support (my wife still runs a PR/social media consultancy business) was seamless. We kept the publicist up to date with work being carried out from home and she also provided me with lots of invaluable opportunities and ideas, as well as giving me gentle prods when I got caught up in pre-launch business and needed a reminder to get copy into various outlets in time for deadline. In short, Moon Books - and the publicist in particular - have been brilliant. They have far surpassed my expectations in terms of PR support and I cannot recommend them highly enough. A brilliant publishing outfit to work with, and I will not hesitate to take my next book proposal to them first. Taz Thornton
The CI Publicity services are a necessity to any author. But, as a first-timer I have found their services without doubt - an invaluable source of help and support. They are the building bricks of a platform that without the commitment and attention to detail they provide, could easily give way under the lack of knowledge from a newbie like myself. I have nothing but admiration for their professionalism. Sheena Cundy
The efforts with the Thunderclap to launch my book made a huge difference. Pagan Portals Candle Magic got to number 1 in the witchcraft section on Amazon just after the Thunderclap happened. Also, Nimue's blogging and sharing of my posts has raised awareness of my book and workshops. Lucya Starza
Every time I contacted my publicist, I received a reply very quickly. John Hunt has responded to my requests in a timely, courteous, and professional way, supporting my queries and supplementing them with their ideas, too! Susan S. Morrison
I happily endorse the efforts made by Trevor Greenfield and the CI Publicity team. They always reply promptly to any questions I email them, and secured some wonderful reviews of my books. Steve Andrews
I've had some great experiences with the publicity team at CI, via the Moon Books imprint. They put me in touch with Watkins which allowed me to have an article in their Mind, Body Spirit Magazine. I've also had numerous positive reviews thanks to them sending my book to the right people. For a new author, it can be daunting stepping into the publishing world, but I've always found the team here supportive and eager to help out. Mabh Savage
Just wanted to pop in to say how honored I feel to be an author with CI (Dodona). Finishing up my 1st book with them now (NAKED TAROT). Everyone is so friendly and helpful. I love the diversity of titles, and the book covers are some of the best in the biz. And the database model? Brill! Janet Boyer
More endorsements under the imprints, on the website, as in http://www.zero-books.net/author-endorsements.html.
We all know publicity can be expensive. And the downside of publicity is, even if you find yourself getting excellent coverage, this does not necessarily guarantee sales.
This does not make publicity any less important to your career. Every writer should have a strategy for it.
Publishing 101 by Jane Friedman is pithy, down-to-earth, and a wisdom-dense guide to all aspects of publishing for contemporary writers and is an excellent primer to all facets of online marketing.
The Writer’s Internet by Sarah-Beth Watkins is a fun, easy-to-read book for writers who want to get the most out of the internet and don’t know how. http://www.compass-books.net/books/writers-interne...
The CI imprint Compass Books (http://www.compass-books.net/) publishes practical books for writers.
The Master Communicator's Handbook by Tim Ward (one of our publishers) and Teresa Erikson, published in the Changemakers imprint, has relevant chapters for authors.
