In today’s episode, we speak to Marika Flatt, the co-owner of PR by the Book, about the importance of picking the right publication date for an author’s book, and how it factors into their PR campaign.

1:18 - Why don’t you start by telling us a bit about your background and what you do.

• I started as a publicist almost 23 years ago.
• In 2002 my husband and I started PR by the Book and so we’re a little over 17 years into that.
• I’ve been able to see the evolution of book publicity go from faxing press releases to tweeting a journalist, so it’s been really fun to see how it’s changed.

2:14 - For people who are listening and don’t have the first clue about what that means for an author in terms of marketing and PR, can you give us a baseline understanding of what publicity means to an author?

• Publicity is really the media relations aspect of getting your book covered by the media.
• We do have some clients that we’re working with them on the speaking side, and we do some social media support as well, but primarily it’s focused on media relations.

3:57 - Maybe start by explaining what the significance is of a specific publication date when you’re designing a PR campaign.

• There are some pretty strict rules when you’re dealing with the media, because nobody wants to be second—they all want to be first.
• When it comes to a publication date, we want the bulk of the media to start hitting that month.
• Timeliness is really important because if there’s hooks that are timely, then that’s what we can lean on with the media.
• Without timeliness there’s really not that call to action for the media to say “okay I’ll do it in this month.”
• But now with the rise of self publishing, they’re coming to us earlier and earlier, and I will give them the honest truth on where they should be in terms of timeliness.

7:35 - What are the implications when an author moves their pub date? Is there ever an instance where that’s a particularly good idea?

• I have been in a situation before where an author was working with a publisher and there was a solid reason to move it up just one month, from May to April, because there were some tie-ins with Mother’s Day and other things.
• We were able to shift it because it was so far in advance.
• We’ve been on the other end of that too, where we’ve created the timeline and then it gets pushed in terms of production.
• We just have to be nimble, but we do that. We can play around with it a little bit.

9:58 - Can you describe in general terms what authors can expect as far as activity around their pub date?

• A lot of our campaigns end up starting two months prior to pub date, and that’s when we move into the short lead phase. And short lead media would consist of all the online and digital opportunities out there, radio and television opportunities, newspapers.
• There’s a process where we start out by writing very particular press materials that we think are going to get the media’s attention. We start curating media lists based on the type of book. And then when the press materials are written, edited, approved by the client, and we’ve got those media lists ready to go, that’s when we start pitching. So that might be week three of the campaign, sometimes week four if the author takes a little bit longer to get back to us.
• Then in that month prior to pub date we’re pitching, pitching, pitching. We’re following up, we’re getting people what they need, and then there’s more follow up after that.
• You’re continuing to reach out to people who would be appropriate, so that in that month of pub date you’ve got media secured to start hitting the end consumer.

13:32 - I suppose maybe we should take a step back and help people understand the reason why publicity is so important to support a book launch.

• I’ve always said, without publicity the book is just sitting there on the shelf.
• We have to get right up in front of the consumer and we have to tell them why they need the book.
• In a perfect world you would have a campaign running several months after pub date so that you just continue to build on that momentum.
• One of the worst things an author can do is to end their publicity at the end of the month that the book came out. It’s kind of like “Oh wow- you got this wave, and it just fell.” And you’re not riding it.

18:05 - So what can an author do to prepare for that? We’ve been talking about how important it is to build that wave and keep riding it. So how can they prepare for that very important phase?

• Preparing is so important, and that starts early. To make sure you have a great book, and even before all that, it’s starting out planning “who is my audience?”
• And then from there, it’s making sure that the platform is there. Perhaps having a great website that is contemporary enough.
• If it’s a great book and it’s clear on the audience and the value, and the branding looks good, then all of that factors in to the success of the publicity of the campaign.

21:00 - How important are those seasonal tie-ins when you’re speaking with an author about selecting a pub date?

• It’s really important for us because it gives us something to bite on to.
• There are really big ones that most media outlets are aware of, but then there’s that next tier that media outlets might not be aware of- and for those, we’re basically creating the segment idea for them.
• If there’s no timeliness, it’s just another book coming out in another month. What makes it unique?
• If you think about the goals for the media outlet, ultimately they have to sell advertising. And to sell advertising they have to have viewers, listeners, and readers. So they’re thinking “what content can I put out there to get the most response?”

25:40 - Is there a worst time of the year for an author to release their book?

• It makes me cringe when I hear that a book is coming out in November or December and there’s no reason for it.
• Let’s say you choose a December pub date- nobody is really paying attention in December to what we're saying to them because they’re busy.
• Then, on January first your book is all of a sudden old to the media because it’s the next year- and it may have only been three weeks. You’re taking a window that could have lasted months and months long and you’ve compacted it down to a couple of weeks because now your publication date is last year.

28:30 - So thinking about 2020, are there any seasons or months that you would avoid or recommend?

• The first thing that comes to mind is November around the presidential season.
• I remember this so vividly from 4 years ago when we came across the same situation. And it was so challenging in the fall to get authors that had no political angle and hooks any type of media.
• It’s smart to look through the year and think “ok, are there times that the media really will be focused on one particular topic?” And if it’s outside of your realm of expertise then it’s going to be a challenge.

30:30 - Is there any other advice you’d like to share?

• I really am such an advocate of starting to think about those press opportunities in the very beginning stages of writing or even thinking about the book.

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About Marika

Marika Flatt was hired as a “baby book publicist” in 1997 upon graduating cum laude from Texas A&M University with a degree in Communications. After taking over the management of that boutique literary firm in just a few short years, she & her husband, Doug, launched PR by the Book in 2002, capitalizing on her love of media & books.

In her spare time, Marika has been a travel writer for nearly two decades and serves as the Travel Editor for Texas Lifestyle Magazine. Marika can be heard on the statewide NPR show “Texas Standard”, giving her Weekend Trip Tips, and is a regular travel contributor on several TV stations around Texas.

For more information about PR by the Book's new author to influencer program visit www.authortoinfluencer.com.