Dermatographia, Book Launch Planning, and what to do at six months out
- At November 18, 2014
- By Jeannine Gailey
- In Blog
0
First of all, thank you to Ariana Page Russell for interviewing me over at her blog on dermatographia and poetry! She found a poem I wrote on the subject and decided to write, and it was really fun talking to her!
So, I’ve had my hands full trying to do all the things you’re supposed to do six months before launching your book, like send out e-galleys, contact bookstores and other locales for your book launch reading (I was planning on having mine at Open Books in Seattle, but they’ve announced they are no longer doing readings after December 2014, sadly.) I’m also trying to send out my little PR kit to magazines, book blogs, and other places – it seems early, but really it’s not too early, which is incredible, right?
The Robot Scientist’s Daughter book launch countdown! Six month mark. List of things to do: Find a place to do the book launch, send out e-galleys to likely reviewers, check proof, order book postcards…send out queries to people who might be interested in teaching, reviewing, or otherwise taking an interest in the book. I’ll do this again on the blog at three months, just so you can follow the trail of a poet trying to launch her fourth book of poetry! I don’t want to bore you with all the details, but just in case it’s useful to someone, I thought I’d document it…
Speaking of which, if there are any talented filmmakers or video experts out there who would be willing to help a poet out with a book trailer for credit, please let me know!
The Robot Scientist’s Daughter cover
The other thing I want to catch up on over the holidays is the best gift a writer could give a friend – some book reviews on Amazon and Goodreads! I’ve gotten behind on my reviews and have a stack of friends’ books that have come out this year. It’s a nice thing to do when you get a little downtime. Also, it’s been so cold, I really want to decorate the house early this year! I’ve already bought two little poinsettias AND a tiny rosemary Christmas tree…We actually had some sun for a few days, but it was cold enough for a hat, gloves, coat, and boots!
Jeannine Hall Gailey served as the second Poet Laureate of Redmond, Washington and the author of Becoming the Villainess, She Returns to the Floating World, Unexplained Fevers, The Robot Scientist’s Daughter, and winner of the Moon City Press Book Prize and SFPA’s Elgin Award, Field Guide to the End of the World. Her latest, Flare, Corona from BOA Editions, was a finalist for the Washington State Book Award. She’s also the author of PR for Poets, a Guidebook to Publicity and Marketing. Her work has been featured on NPR’s The Writer’s Almanac, Verse Daily and The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror. Her poems have appeared in The American Poetry Review, Poetry, and JAMA.
