Blog
A Virtual Hug in the Cold, Digital World (or Yesterday a Blog Entry Fell into My Lap)
Yesterday was just one of those days. A storm zapped one of our routers, disabling the network and leaving us limping along. Forced to rely on an email system that was less than optimal and definitely not what I was used to, I committed what I can only guess is considered the worst of all […]
Go Digital or Die
We in the publishing world have come a long way in recent weeks in putting real clout and actual staff behind our opinion that the importance of digital media in marketing a book is growing fast and, in fact, has probably hit what Malcolm Gladwell so elegantly dubbed “the tipping point.” If digital media isn’t […]
Tech Guru Dances with Timing Before and After Book’s Release
When I met first met Roger McNamee, I was working with him to promote his book, The New Normal, which Portfolio published in 2004. Part big-time fund manager, part rock star (well, lead guitarist in his own band), former business manager for The Grateful Dead, and part high-tech geek who carried half a dozen gadgets […]
Business Books provide “practical magic” to PR Firm
This time last year, I wasn’t baking cookies, shopping for holiday gifts or doing anything remotely holiday related. I was getting ready for the challenge of my life — launching my own firm. I would love to be able to claim that the minute I walked away from a steady paycheck and a job I’d […]
Bezos’ Kindle rocks the book world
Jeff Bezos, the man who reinvented the way the world buys books with Amazon.com, has started a new firestorm of publishing controversy this week, releasing the latest in a series of electronic gadgets which, by design, could render the books we hold, read, linger over, revist, catalogue and collect — all but obsolete. Others have […]
Newspaper of Record Discovers Its Inner YouTube
I am going to drag out my soapbox for a new discovery of mine, something I would not only go out of my way to watch, but would actually motivate me to watch that stuff called “streaming video” that made the founders of YouTube a fortune when they sold it to Google. I make a […]
Know Thy Audience
Who’s reading your book? This is one of those tricky questions — the answer seems SO obvious, but the answer may be more elusive than you think. Books enter the market in a unique and largely untested way. There are generally no focus groups or beta testers. And while no one would dream of launching […]
It’s all About the Book
When I decided to start my own publicity firm, my 7 year old son was POSITIVE that this would be a snap. “It’s easy,” he piped up from the dinner table, “just pick the ones that will be bestsellers!” Sure thing, kiddo. And when I figure out how to do that, I’ll probably ditch it […]
Publicity Goes Online
The Financial Times announced this week that it will now allow 30 free views per month before charging for the digital version. The last couple of weeks have brought news that The New York Times will be discontinuing its TimesSelect service. And rumor has it that under Rupert Murdoch’s ownership, The Wall Street Journal won’t […]
Our Bloggers
