Redefining Success & Sharing My Story With the World
It always has been (and always will be) all about the personal touch
I’m starting to get emails from PR agencies who have found my new book, Good (Enough) Mother, on the top new releases and bestsellers lists on Amazon. It’s very easy to spot a canned email that’s spammy automation and they’ve spent zero time researching me or my book.
When someone sends thoughtful suggestions for media pitches that show they understand what my book is all about, I try to respond and at least acknowledge that I see they did their homework. For a while, I felt sad/mad that I don’t have the budget for PR support with this book launch. I considered writing back, “I don’t have the money for this, but thanks for your free suggestions!!”
It got me thinking: is publicity support really what I want for this project? Sure, any author would kill to land a spot on the Today Show or Good Morning America. And yes, the pitches and emails and outreach take up a ton of my time, so I would love to have an inside connection that saves me a ridiculous amount of time spent scouring the internet just to attempt to find the right human to chat with about a feature.
But this book is a vulnerable story about my very real and personal life. I spent years crafting these essays and deciding how to tell this story—my story.
Now, I’m carefully crafting how I talk about what this book is about. It’s one thing to write my story. It’s a whole other beast to package up my story to sell it. I love what
said here:As a seasoned editor and nonprofit fundraising professional, I care deeply about how every pitch is crafted. I spend a lot of time writing quality emails that reach every individual on a personal level. In the same way that I carefully write grant proposals, I do my homework to understand who I’m pitching and how my angle should shift based on the audience.
Here are a few DIY PR strategies we’re using for my book launch:
Snail mail with personal touches: We’ve sent out boxes to authors and editors who have either endorsed my book or have agreed to read an early copy. My best friend Katharine is along for this book launch ride, supporting with all things creative and marketing and organization, and she carefully packaged every box with some special surprises that so perfectly fit the book theme. I spent several hours at her house writing personal notes to every recipient in loopy cursive. And this all started with an email exchange where I share about my connection with the person—if I met them at a conference years ago, or how their work has impacted me. Let me tell you, tracking down mailing addresses has been a full-time gig :) The boxes should be arriving this week! I’m excited to start connecting with these individuals who I admire so much and have agreed to support this launch.
Flyers around town: We printed flyers with QR codes to hang around town locally at coffee shops and community centers. Katharine helped design them in Canva and we printed them at Staples—simple and affordable. At the last minute, I added “local author” and a picture of me holding the book to add a personal touch. I’m a real human! I live here! I wrote a book! My family and friends are helping to hang them around town. Will we ever know if these flyers directly correlate to sales? Nope. But it can’t hurt! Maybe someone will see it who needs the message in this book.
Podcast and Substack guest features: I’m keeping a spreadsheet with all of the podcasts and newsletters that I want to pitch to support my book launch. Slowly, I’m making a dent to this list, one by one. With my time and energy feeling limited (listen to this podcast episode to really know why), I’m trying to look at this list and prioritize two things: 1) Do I know this person and it would be a quicker sell because they’re eager to support me? 2) Can I get the most bang for my buck? For instance, I pitched a large podcast network who passed my pitch to several show producers, and one of the shows wrote back that they want to interview me! (More on that soon… I’m SO excited for this big opportunity!) Every single pitch requires careful thought and research: what is the heart behind this show or newsletter? How would my book or my expertise connect with their audience?
Individual connections to build a launch team: I’ve shared here and on social media that we’re building a launch team, and ANYONE is welcome to join! But I’m finding that texting people individually is the way to reach them. Life is busy and people want to feel personally invited. I hope if you’re reading this that you’ll consider this your personal invitation to join the launch team—it’s very easy. You fill out this form with your preorder info, you get an email with a PDF of the book to start reading today, and you’re ready to leave a review and share it with your community on March 11!
Leveraging the power of MPM (My Proud Mom): I’m kidding, but not. My mom is so proud and supportive of this book. She’s currently texting me about spreading the news at her book club and with her friends and hanging flyers around town! Friends and family members are starting to read early copies of the book and they’re joining in on the launch excitement. I continue to learn this over and over again: the power of word-of-mouth far surpasses any kind of marketing strategy. For years, my entire freelance business was built on referrals, and the same can happen here.
It’s easy to get caught up in the strategies during this phase of the publishing journey. After working so hard on this book, I want it to be a success. But I’m constantly readjusting what it means to be “successful.”
Ultimately, I started on this road to feel a sense of completion over a body of work. And even more deeply, I wanted to share my story with the world and connect with other readers who will say things that the launch team have already been texting me:
“I’m reading right now and bawling my eyes out. It’s so beautiful.”
“Ashley. This book. I sat down like an hour and a half ago and I couldn’t stop until I finished it. I LOVE it.”
“I don’t read many (probably any) books in a day. Yours I did.”
“I’m already on my second reading. It’s one of those books you want to keep reading because you’re so invested in it, but then you slow down because you don’t want it to end.”
“I was in tears in my taco salad by the end.”
THANK YOU to every reader and cheerleader in my corner. Please consider joining the launch team and supporting all of the DIY publicity efforts by becoming a paid subscriber.
Preorder Your Copy Today
More here on why preorders matter and how to claim your preorder bonus!
Thank you for sharing this information—these are so great. Also, it feels surreal to have stumbled across this post—I’m also a nonprofit grant writer … and am writing a parenting memoir! What are the odds!
Planning to come back and read more about your new book—after my Friday grant deadline! 🥴
Love these tips! These are great. And, yes, never underestimate an MPM. They make the world go round and dreams come true. 😊