Promotional help for a fantasy novel

Verlin

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Hi all,

Wild Rose Press just published a contemporary fantasy thriller of mine (Coattail Karma), and I've saved some bucks to put toward promotion since this outfit does none on its own, and doesn't use a distributor, for that matter. To be clear, I'm not looking for advice around whether this is a sound idea. I know it's extremely unlikely that I will see results that offset the costs, but I have my own idiosyncratic priorities and I'm happy with them.

So does anyone know of a publicist/PR person who either specializes in fantasy or would be otherwise recommended? I'd very much appreciate any comments on this aspect of my post.

Thank you,
Verlin Darrow
 

CathleenT

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I've avoided publicists because I've never read anyone, on any forum, say that they hired one and it was a good move. I have, however, read plenty of stuff that mourned the missing money spent on this. That's all of use I can tell you.
 

Gillhoughly

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A publicist is a waste of money. Don't even bother. You will never make back the expenditure in sales.

Word of mouth, reviews, and blog posts on your work are the best bang for your buck and those can be free.

If you can offer digital copies for reviews go for it. Ditto for bloggers who review fantasy books, so you reach your target market.
 

deceangli

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(Is this why many authors keep blogs and support one another through blogs?)

Promotion really isn't easy, because there are so many of us chasing a finite market, and the main distributors (eg Amazon, but all of them really) understandably try to focus on the best-known authors or books cos they're a business - all of which makes it difficult for our books to be seen.

I don't know if I'm allowed to mention this here, so I'll be circumspect and the moderators can attach electrodes to my nipples (again) if I'm breaching protocol. I've started up a promotional tool which enables authors to interview themselves - it looks as if you've been interviewed by the magazine, which gives you something to tweet/Facebook about. In addition to the people who see your message, your book will also be exposed to complete strangers (that's the point, really). More info here: https://profilecritics.com/about
 

Marissa D

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Instead of spending money on a publicist, consider spending that money on learning how to use Amazon, FB, or Bookbub ads (i.e., take a class), or on creating a kickass website and newsletter and growing your own fanbase through it. Because yeah, I've yet to hear an author say that the money they spent on a publicist actually accomplished anything.
 

Donnettetxgirl

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Hi all,

Wild Rose Press just published a contemporary fantasy thriller of mine (Coattail Karma), and I've saved some bucks to put toward promotion since this outfit does none on its own, and doesn't use a distributor, for that matter. To be clear, I'm not looking for advice around whether this is a sound idea. I know it's extremely unlikely that I will see results that offset the costs, but I have my own idiosyncratic priorities and I'm happy with them.

So does anyone know of a publicist/PR person who either specializes in fantasy or would be otherwise recommended? I'd very much appreciate any comments on this aspect of my post.

Thank you,
Verlin Darrow
I agree with the others here. You can do this yourself. Many of us are in the same boat in one way or the other no matter who we published with. I honestly think it all comes down to building your audience. Not just promoting your book to sell it to a stray person here and there, but promoting you...the books you write and who you are as an author.

Creating a newsletter is always a good idea. And then run a contest to bring in subscribers. Give something away that people are interested in. Promote the contest. I take all the free publicity I can get, but I'm not against paying for certain advertisements when I'm confident it will bring in more people as my audience. As long as the money I spend is well spent. I look at it as an investment in myself.

But honestly, some of the best free promotions have brought me in the most subscribers. For instance, I took a look at some of the groups I am a member of through my Facebook account. I put together a contest for new subscribers and I announced it on some of these groups. I was amazed at how many new subscribers I ended up with. I far exceeded my goal.

It may take a little time to build your audience. But you will get there. I hope this helps.
 

mrsmig

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Donnettetxgirl, you may not realize that you're responding to a thread that dates back to 2019. Chances are the OP has moved on from this by now.