What to Do Before Your Book Launch: For Traditionally Published Books

by M.J. Rose, Randy Susan Meyers

What To Do Before Your Book Launch is a guide for authors, covering everything from working with your publisher, to reading in public, to help for publicity and marketing, to using (and misusing) social media, to how to dress for your author photo…and far more, including cautionary tales, worksheets, timelines and etiquette tips.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction

90 pages, Paperback

First published July 9, 2012

About the author

New York Times Bestseller, M.J. Rose grew up in New York City mostly in the labyrinthine galleries of the Metropolitan Museum, the dark tunnels and lush gardens of Central Park and reading her mother's favorite books before she was allowed. She believes mystery and magic are all around us but we are too often too busy to notice... books that exaggerate mystery and magic draw attention to it and remind us to look for it and revel in it.

Her most recent novel, The Last Tiara, will be published Feb 2, 2021

Rose's work has appeared in many magazines including Oprah Magazine and she has been featured in the New York Times, Newsweek, WSJ, Time, USA Today and on the Today Show, and NPR radio. Rose graduated from Syracuse University, spent the '80s in advertising, has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and since 2005 has run the first marketing company for authors - Authorbuzz.com

The television series PAST LIFE, was based on Rose's novels in the Reincarnationist series. She is one of the founding board members of International Thriller Writers and currently serves, with Lee Child, as the organization's co-president..

Reviews

[Kourtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a fan of Randy Susan Meyers. Ever since I heard her speak at the 2010 Backspace Conference. Here first novel, The Murderer’s Daughters, is exquisite. I’m 100 pages in and I can’t wait to get back to it. So when I saw she co-wrote What To Do Before Your Book Launch I had to pick it up.

Randy Susan Meyers and M.J. Rose provide an intimate portrait of what happens to a writer during the book launch process. It reminded me of what Anne Lamott’s book Bird By Bird does for the writing life.

They provide real life examples and insights from insiders in the business. They help authors manage expectations and learn when to speak up and how to put their best foot forward.

I appreciated their chapter on manners for authors–it’s really about being nice. Genuinely nice.

The writer’s launch “ten commandments” are rules every author should live by.

Once my book is published, I know I’ll be re-reading her chapter on consolation for bad reviews, where she doesn’t shy away from talking about the pain of reading them and how hard it is to not be hurt by them.

Many authors will find her timeline for the year before publication useful. If you’re not a great planner, it’s an indispensable guide to when things need to happen.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an outstanding resource. There are so many things authors have to keep track of in the lead up to publication. How fortunate to have them all in one place! Meyers and Rose are authors who've learned the ropes on how to prepare and promote their books, and how to succeed in a tough industry at a tough time. Lucky for the rest of us that they've decided to share what they've learned.

[Virginia DeLuca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with wonderful advice given with humor and understanding!! And it's fun to read even if you don't have a book to launch.

Now I have re-read it with a book to launch and I still love it! Full of wisdom, good advice, and comfort.

[Erica Ferencik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This needs to be required reading for every nail-biting crazy busy author working up to his/her launch. A fast, informative, honest, wise, and actually very funny read that wastes not one word. What a gift! Thank you thank you thank you Randy Susan Meyers and M.J. Rose for putting this together.

[J.M. Blaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have a book coming, want a book coming or are interested in how the business works....

[Carrie La Seur · Rating 5 out of 5]

The rating is pretty personal. I've re-read this twice lately, like a bedtime story, to soothe my nerves. Goodnight galleys, goodnight blurbs, goodnight mysterious readers in the suburbs....

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's good to plan ahead. "What To Do Before Your Book Launch" helps you do just that! Hot links in the Kindle Edition are a great addition.

[Iliana Morales · Rating 3 out of 5]

LI agree with you that the illustrations play a very important role. The dark colors and details help create a sense of mystery and suspense that makes the reader feel part of the story. I think it's great that you connected it to what we learned in class about how illustrations not only accompany but also enrich the narrative.

Thank you for sharing your choice; it made me want to reread it more carefully.

What a lovely choice! Love, Violet is a great example of how books can teach about emotions and diversity in a very accessible way for children. I love how you mentioned social-emotional learning; it's definitel

[Cherry, · Rating 5 out of 5]

A message read for new authors

The is a book filled with adv for a debut author,especially one without aclueofwheretostart.

The book is a blessing for a novice writer. Who w

Thank you for this book filled with pointers on how to set up a launch party, Plan a publicity campaign, have publicity photo made, do a reading and how to truly respect your readers. I started reading to find out what the book can do for me and now am focused on what can I do I market my book. Thank you ladies for your excellent advice.

[Lyzette Wanzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in conjunction with another book about book launches and publishing your first book. I highlighted passages all over this text, then went back and periodically reviewed those pages as my book got closer to its launch date. If you have a book publishing within the next year, I strongly recommend this book to you. Be sure to not just breeze through it, but also use it as a bit of a reference manual. This shouldn't be the only book you read about launching your first book, but it should definitely be included.

[Rebecca L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of helpful info

Lots of helpful info- although most of it doesn’t apply to authors who have just been signed with a small press, which is what I was looking for. Nevertheless, it is full of useful advice and information.

[Karen Dybis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Required reading

This is an honest look at the publishing business with plenty of practical advice every author or potential author can use.

[Rachel Pollock · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was exactly the book i was looking for. As an author with a book in the pipeline, i was really at a loss as to what to expect--it's nothing they taught us in grad school (which is a-whole-nother tangent i could go on, but not here). I came to it pretty clear on the process of traditional publication up to the point where you finish your revisions with your editor, but then it was kind of blurry: blah blah something mystical time passes...published!

This book explains many of the interim details: the difference between publicity and advertising, who gets book tours, how to plan a launch party, whether to expend energy and creativity on blogging or creating a social media presence, etc. This book is not long, and reading it on the heels of _The Savvy Author's Guide to Book Publicity_, i do wish this book went a bit more in-depth into some of its topics, but because this book came out in 2012 and every other book i can find in this area dates back to the early Aughts (and thus is out of date WRT modern social media ubiquity, the demise of Borders and so many book review columns in print media, and some of the publisher/Amazon struggles that have happened in the interim). The current nature of the info in this book makes it a five-starrer for me, for sure.

For how short it is, i highlighted a load of stuff in it, and i feel like i have the tools to create a helpful, concrete to-do list of what I as an author can do to prepare for the point at which my publisher will want my input and assistance in the launching of my book.

Caveat: this is not going to be as helpful to you if you are self-publishing. It will probably still be helpful, especially the calendar of what to do in the months leading up to the launch, but all the "drawing back the veil on the arcane world of publishing" stuff won't apply to self-pubbers' experience of the process. Still, i think learning and knowing what trad-pub authors face would be useful for strategizing one's own release in a POD paradigm though, so i'd still recommend it to any and all authors with full-length books coming out.

[Greg Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Both Rose and Meyers suggest new authors give out 5 star reviews on books they like. So here it is - 5 stars.

Only a little bit tongue in cheek - This book earned 5 stars with me because it gave me valuable advice, starting right in the introduction. In bold:

"No one will care about your book as much as you do. Not your mother, not your agent, and not your editor."

Rose and Meyers are right. My new book is the most important project in the whole world and I do care about it more than anyone else.

I'm a rookie author in the process of publishing my first book with Beaver's Pond Press in Minnesota. I don't have a publicist or an agent and my marketing budget is somewhere around 20 bucks. I need to find a way to maximize that pitiful marketing budget so the rest of the world can get a chance to experience "Bullseye Breach." (Search for it with Google and it's near the top. It's an IT security book, but presented as a fiction story with a great plot so people will enjoy reading it. It's about a timely topic written by the right guy with the right background. Yup, I just weaseled in a free, shameless plug. )

I don't know anything about book parties or publicity. Heck, I didn't know what a genre was 18 months ago and I just learned what "indie" meant a few months ago. I want to learn how to do this right and Rose and Meyers taught me some good lessons.

There are a few reviews from other indie authors like me, complaining this book isn't for them because they don't have agents and big publishing houses behind them. Well, I don't have an agent or a big publishing house behind me, but I plan to extract every ounce of low cost advice I can from this book and do everything in my power to promote my book. M. J. Rose and Randy Susan Meyers, I am your student - thanks for the lessons. I wish I could afford marketing services from you.

- Greg Scott

[Jonathan Kranz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Authors M.J. Rose and Randy Susan Meyers caution up-and-coming writers to never post reviews with anything less than 5 stars. Frankly, I would've given "What to Do" 5 stars anyway. "What to Do" is both like a bracing shot of whiskey (low on volume, yet packing lots of punch) AND a shocking cold shower; Rose and Meyers aren't afraid to burst bubbles of illusion by describing the hard realities of contemporary publishing. Interestingly, a number of the most revelatory chapters, including the one about the strange love triangle among writer/agent/editor, are accompanied with notes indicating that NONE of the writers/agents/editors they interviewed would go on the record with their contributing comments. Gulp.

The authors articulate a number of inconvenient truths: most books are merely printed, not published; you can't rely on the publisher to market or publicize your book; you want to be left alone to write? Tough shit: being a published author means being a public person -- deal with it or be prepared to be done.

Fortunately, all the "bad" news comes with good advice for promoting your book and career: practical, do-able stuff that can increase your likelihood of success. Special bonus: a step-by-step timeline of activities for the year before launch, plus a list of social media tips.

I love the honesty and practical wisdom of "What to Do" and expect it will serve me as a frank and welcome guide for the publishing road ahead.

[Ryan Zee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly Recommended

Whether you are an aspiring author or established pro, a book marketer or simply interested in learning more about the publishing business, this book has valuable information to offer.

[Gary Parkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book for all authors, whether traditionally published or small/self published. Even well-established authors would fare well to get a refresher on the best practices! The book is balanced with anecdotes, facts, opinions, experiences and more.

[Brian Baskins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and the detailed explanation of what to do before promoting a newly launched book. This book was interesting and helpful.

[Joyce Mandeville · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful.

I have a three book launch coming up in June and I found many of the ideas and suggestions incredibly helpful.

[Lara Lillibridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think someone on twitter or in a blog recommended this book, so I impulse-bought it, but I have to admit that many books of this ilk have been disappointing at best, so it took me a month to actually open it. I'm glad I finally did, because it was not only helpful in terms of explaining the publishing market and unrealistic expectations of many writers, but it was presented in an easy-to-read, even light-hearted way. I think I read it cover to cover in around an hour, but I made many underlinings and circling of things I need to go back to later.

Some of this information was new to me, and some of it was a reminder of advice I had been given but didn't want to hear, and needed to hear again.