Part
Two of My Candid Interview with Freelance Publicist Mayra Calvani
By
Dora
Machado
I
met Mayra Calvani last year when my publisher recommended her services to help
promote my 2013 release, The Curse Giver. Until that moment, I hadn't really
understood what a good book publicist was all about. Mayra's access to
high-quality websites and blogs impressed me, as did her organizational skills
and her ability to follow up and deliver on the specific services she offers.
She knows what she's talking about.
If you are
considering buying a book publicity package and you haven't read the first part
of this interview, go back and take a look. You'll be happy you did. Today, Mayra
gives us her take on the importance of marketing a novel, the role of social
media and the future of book promotion.
Mayra
Calvani
Welcome
back, Mayra. In the highly competitive world of book publicity, how are you
able to publish your reviews and promote your authors in so many quality, high-visibility,
high-traffic sites?
I started writing for all these sites years ago. My
aim then was to build a platform and promote my own books, as well as promote
other authors' works. At some point, about three years ago, I told myself that
I could maybe create an interview package for authors and make a little extra
money in the process. So that's how it started.
Early this year, my cloud expanded to several great
blogs created by Dorothy Thompson of Pump Up Your Book Promotion (http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/),
a terrific lady and company to work with. She invited me to be an author on her
various blogs. The value of my packages greatly increased since then. I'm
immensely grateful to Dorothy for this opportunity. I love working with her.
Is
social media important? How do you use Facebook and Twitter to your authors'
benefit? Are there other trends that have a positive impact on book promotion?
I share my clients' promo links on Twitter (I
pre-schedule multiple tweets over a period of time) and on various Facebook and
Goodreads book-related groups.
Social media can be effective, but it has to be done
well. By this I mean that an author mustn't only self-promote; he must offer
valuable content and spend some time each week really interacting with his followers. This, of course, is time
consuming.
But again, nobody seems to have a magic formula.
While some authors are having success increasing sales via social media, others
who are also doing it right aren't selling books at all.
Street team is a new concept that uses social media
to create a group of fans to spread the word about a book. I don't offer this
service but some publicists are doing it. I'm not too informed about its
effectiveness to give my opinion on it, but I'm curious about it and in fact
plan to hire a publicist in the near future to create one for me.
You ask about other trends… I'd like to mention that many fellow authors
are having success with promotional sites such as BookBub.com and
BookGorilla.com. This is certainly worth checking into by authors. As I said
before, though, success also depends on the book's cover, blurb, and
genre.
What
happens when an author concentrates on writing but neglects book promotion?
Like I said earlier, according to Bowker's,
approximately 3,000,000 books were published in 2011. I don't think I need to
say anything else—except to remind authors that while book promotion is
important, nothing is as important as producing that next book. Meaning, never
let promotion get in the way of writing.
Do
you think that your success as a book publicist is connected to your success as
an author and/or your writer's skills?
Interesting question, and one that makes me think
about how I got started as a freelance publicist. As it usually happens, one
thing leads to another.
I reviewed for years before I co-wrote The Slippery Art of Book Reviewing. I
never thought or planned to write a book about reviewing. One thing evolved
organically from the other.
The same thing happened with freelance publicity. I
never intended or thought I would do publicity. Like I mentioned earlier, I
interviewed authors and wrote for many online magazines for free for years
before I thought, “Hey, I can create promo packages and charge for doing this.”
As an author, though, I'm sensitive to other authors'
concerns when it comes to promotion—especially their pocketbook. I like to
offer good value for the money.
Mayra
Calvani's Favorite Tea Room in Brussels, where she lives
How
do you balance writing and book promoting? What's the workday like for a book
publicist?
I have developed a schedule that works for me. I try
to do my writing and creative work in the mornings. That's when my mind is
fresh and rested and when I'm at my best creative wise. My writing comes first.
If I'm in the process of editing a book, I'll do it in the mornings as well. I
wish I could be one of those authors who writes eight hours a day, but my brain
doesn't work the same after midday. It gets tired. I just don't have the mental
stamina.
Afternoons are for my own book-related stuff, my own
book promotion, answering emails, etc. Evenings are usually for my freelance book
publicity.
I'm flexible with my afternoons and evenings, but I
try to be non-negotiable with my mornings. Of course, life often gets in the
way, but if I can avoid it, I seldom make appointments with doctors or friends
in the mornings. I know from experience that a morning of no writing done means
a day of no writing done.
Since I adopted this schedule two years ago, I've
been more productive than ever—and less busy.
Putting
on your writer's hat, tell us about your books. What kinds of books do you
write, what's in your pipeline, and are you currently promoting a new release?
I write fiction and nonfiction for children and
adults on both sides of the spectrum, from children's picture books to horror
for adults.
I recently completed a YA fantasy that landed me an
agent in late August. I'm currently working on another YA novel and awaiting
the release of yet another one next spring. One of my children's picture books,
A Bad Mad Sad Day for Mama Bear (http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Mad-Sad-Mama-Bear-ebook/dp/B00GL52ZE2)
just came out and I'm busy promoting it.
Trick
question: Do you think about book promotion when you are writing your books?
Should authors be thinking about book promotion when we are crafting our
novels?
I generally don't think about book promotion when
writing my books. I try to focus on enjoying the writing process itself and
feeling passionate about my subject, story, and characters. And, of course, on
improving my craft and writing the best book I can possibly write.
Having said this, there's a part of me that
sometimes worries about my audience and the effect my choices may have in later
promoting the book.
For example, I'm currently working on a YA
psychological thriller with Hispanic characters set in Puerto Rico in the
1970s.
Well, right there I think: This is suicide. I'm
narrowing my audience big time! Why not set it in the present in the U.S. or
England, thus greatly widening my audience?
But I can't do that. Why? Because I have to stay
true to the story and characters, that's why. Of course, if in the future my
agent or publisher suggests I change the time and setting, I would give it
serious consideration. But for the moment, while writing it, I can't change it
based on future book promotion. The story and characters would lose
authenticity. They would feel fake. I would lose passion.
Looking
forward, what does the future of book promotion look like?
More and more of it will be done online. We'll see
more audio and video reviews and interviews.
Thank
you so much for visiting with us!
Thanks for this opportunity, Dora. It was great
chatting with you.
****
About
Mayra Calvani:
Mayra Calvani writes
fiction and nonfiction for children and adults and has authored over a dozen
books, some of which have won awards. Her stories, reviews, interviews and
articles have appeared on numerous publications such as The Writer, Writer's Journal,
Multicultural Review, and Bloomsbury
Review, among many others. When she's not writing, reading, editing or
reviewing, she enjoys walking her dog, traveling, and spending time with her
family.
****
About
Dora Machado:
Dora Machado is
the award-winning author of the epic fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest
novel, The Curse Giver, available
from Twilight Times Books. She grew up in the Dominican Republic, where she
developed a fascination for writing and a taste for Merengue. After a lifetime
of straddling such compelling but different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to
her stories. She lives in Florida with her husband and three very opinionated
cats.
When she is not writing fantasy, Dora writes
features and interviews for Murder By Four, an award winning blog for readers
and writers, and Savvy Authors, where writers help writers.
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Thanks again for having me, gang!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks to Dora for the great questions.
Best,
Mayra
It was my pleasure, Mayra. I think we all learned a lot from you!
ReplyDelete