Promoting a paperback release

Some thoughts on author promo efforts in the current publishing landscape

May 30, 2023

A hardcover of *Dustborn*, because I do not yet have paperback copies to show you.

Dustborn’s paperback releases in exactly four weeks. This will be my first “release” in over two years.

I also don’t have any new books on the horizon. There is nothing new for me to ask readers to preorder, add to their goodreads, put on their TBR, etc, and so it really feels like I need to do something for this paperback. Though I don’t intend for it to be my last traditionally published book, I guess it could be. Despite our personal wishes, we authors can never be sure what the future will hold. Nothing is guaranteed.

I don’t typically promote my paperbacks besides mentioning on social that a paperback is now available. But it feels different this time around.

Allow me to give you a bit of background…

Dustborn came out in hardcover in April of 2021. The pandemic was still affecting bookstores (I signed a few copies on the sidewalk outside my indie, but otherwise couldn’t do events for the book). Ultimately, my sales were hurt by the state of the world and publishing, just as had been true for my middle grade novel The Girl and the Witch’s Garden, which released in July of 2020.

Dustborn also suffered, in my opinion, because it didn’t have physical arcs. Most publishers had stopped doing physical arcs for sequels by this point, but Dustborn was a standalone! Even still, it only got e-arcs.

I’m not sure if physical arcs (or any arcs for that matter) actually help sell books in large numbers, but I do know this: visibility is key in a crowded marketplace and physical arcs help with visibility. Readers photograph physical arcs. They take pictures and post them to social media and then the book appears before other potential readers’ eyeballs. (Sure e-arcs can be photographed too, but physical arcs can also show up on shelves, in stacks/piles, spine-out only, etc. They have more range. They also look very book-ish, with a binding and all that. They make people consider the final book-shaped product.)

There’s a marketing rule that people need to interact with a brand/product seven times before pulling the plug and making a purchase.

When your book doesn’t have physical arcs—when it isn’t popping up on social media feeds to be discovered—that’s another barrier to snagging preorders, being on readers’ radars, and building buzz as release day approaches.

But an in-depth discussion about ARCs is a topic for another time. My point here is, no physical arcs definitely contributed to Dustborn’s lack of visibility. Then the book launched, and B&Ns had only one copy of it.

Once it sold from my local B&N, I never saw it on their shelves again.

As you can imagine, having visibility in a store is crucial when it comes to discoverability. If you’re not being discovered, who is going to buy the book? (Shout out to my local indie, Gibson’s Bookstore, who always has my books. I love you guys!!)

My main struggle now is this: Dustborn is releasing in paperback and I don’t think most readers know about Dustborn, period. So I want to use the paperback launch to boost visibility—to introduce the story to potential new readers. (I also simply feel pressure to remind readers that I exist. I wrote a book! Remember this one? If you haven’t read it yet, now’s a great chance to grab it in paperback!)

At the same time, I don’t want to sink too much of my own time or money into promo efforts, because I need to be focusing on the next book. (After all, that’s the only way I get another book deal. I need a new manuscript to shop.)

After checking in with my publisher and learning they don’t have any real plans for the Dustborn paperback (this is super common, most publishers do not push paperbacks), I spent some time brainstorming how I could give Dustborn a little lift.

I’ve landed on two efforts…

ONE — Influencer mailings

I’m working with my publisher to get a list of readers/reviewers who are a good match for Dustborn. I will then, on my own dime, mail out influencer packages: a fancy envelop stuffed with a paperback copy of Dustborn, and signed art print, and a bookmark.

Normally I would never sink my own money into an effort like this. Especially for a paperback. (I don’t think I’ve ever really pushed a paperback. ) The last time I did really pricey things was for Vengeance Road and Retribution Rails. Those efforts didn’t quite pay off the way I hoped, and there’s no guarantee these mailers will either. But again, this is my last guaranteed “release,” so I’m willing to put a little money behind it on the chance that unboxing photos/videos get posted and new readers discover the book as a result.

On the plus side: I’m using my author copies for this

, so I won’t have to pay for the books. I got a great deal on the custom envelopes. And I’m using art prints and bookmarks that I have left over from the hardcover launch. So this is only going to cost me mailing + packaging + time.

TWO — Reels

Leading up to launch of the paperback and following launch, I’m going to post a few reels promoting the novel to insta. Nothing too fancy, just whatever I can come up with that pitches the book to readers. (I’m still not on TikTok, nor do I want to be, so Reels it is.)

This is an effort that will cost me nothing but my time, a big perk. However, my ability to reach a lot of people is potentially smaller. Unless a reel takes off, my reach is only (roughly) as large as my audience. Whereas with the mailers, each reviewer who receives one and posts about it has an opportunity to reach their audience. (The net casts wider.)

I tossed around some other ideas, too, like running a readalong, but a friend pointed out that this would likely only attract existing fans and my goal should really be to expand and attract new readers.

Other efforts, such as events and school visits, are complicated by timing. School will be out across the country by the time this paperback releases, making school visits impossible. And while events are still on my radar, my schedule gets complicated in the summer due to child care (my kids are with me all summer). Even still, audience turnout has been low recently according to many of my touring author friends. It seems like bigger book festivals and cons are the best options, so I want and need to be selective about which events I pursue and, if invited, agree to attend.

Ultimately, my June efforts for promoting Dustborn are going to come down to mailing out packages and posting some reels… and then getting back to writing the next book.

These days, I think the best thing you can do is write the next book. Honestly, this has always been true. Write the next book is evergreen advice.

After writing the next book, I think the next best thing you can do in the current publishing landscape is focus on improving visibility of your book in whatever ways you have the time and budget for.

I want to stress again that I have never done mailings for one of my books out of my own pocket. The fact that I haven’t released anything in over two years (and have therefore spent virtually nothing on marketing/promo in those two years) means I’m more comfortable doing this now. I made a budget for the effort and talked it over with my partner, and it feels like a worthwhile risk at this point in my career.

Analyzing risks is really all you can do at any stage in the game when it comes to promo/marketing. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing. Look at your career, your budget, your time, your needs. Figure out what you can handle. Say no to what doesn’t make sense and move forward with what does. And remember that of all the fancy efforts you see happening online, a lot of it happens at the author’s expense. Don’t feel bad if your publisher isn’t sending out splashy influencer packages for your book. They’re not doing it for the vast majority of authors.

A little giveaway for you

I’m going to save three of my influencer packages for readers of this newsletter. If you are interested in receiving one, please comment “Pick me!” on this post. I’ll draw three winners at random on Monday June 6 at noon eastern. (I’ll email those winners to get addresses and then ship you a package in late June/early July.)

If you have questions about author promo, drop those in the comments for me to answer.

And lastly, a final obligatory reminder that Dustborn releases in paperback on June 27th, in stores and online! If you like post apocalyptic stories with a touch of sci-fi, dystopia, and western in the mix, it will be right up your alley.

Until next time,

I think had a lot to do with the fact that my publisher HMH (now Clarion) was in the process of being acquired by Harper.

It’s called the Rule of Seven.

This is part of their new strategy; inventory numbers have changed and individual store management has more say over which books to promote and restock in their stores.

My books used to last 2-3 months in B&N. Now it seems like once that one copy is gone, my book is gone. It doesn’t get restocked, at least not at my local store.

“Author copies” are books the publisher provides to the author free of charge around release time, for the author to use for personal and promotional means.

Investing in your own book is always a bit of a risk. Sometimes it pays off. More often, it doesn’t move the needle in incredibly large ways. If you think of visibility as the main goal, as opposed to sales, you may be happier with your overall results.