Using the news to sell your book

I tell authors all the time to use current events to help sell their book. This short article from Sandra Beckwith's BuildBookBuzz newsletter does a great job explaining that concept.

Be Opportunistic:

Tiger's Tale

How can authors capitalize on media events such as the never-ending Tiger Woods drama? Be creative. Using Tiger's tale as an example, you can:

• Form a virtual support group and announce it to the press. For example, the author of a book with a heroine married to a high-profile personality who is caught cheating on his wife can announce that she has formed a virtual support group for - of course - spouses of high-profile personalities caught cheating.

• Create and announce a top 10 list related to your specialty. Maybe it's the most attention-getting personality-based crisis communications events of the decade, a list of the women who have handled a personal crisis with the most dignity and grace, movies you'd like to see made from the year's headlines, and so on.

• Contact the media with your advice to one of the parties involved in the headlines. If your book is on how to survive a divorce or build a more satisfying relationship, give both Woods and his wife advice. If it's a novel centered around a failed marriage, share what you learned about marriage while researching your book. If it's on branding or marketing, state your advice to the companies that sponsor Woods.

If you have something to say about a topic in the news and your book provides the credential you need to say it, don't let someone else get all the media attention. Be creative and pro-active to make sure your book title gets in the news.

Sandra Beckwith's e-newsletter is free. Sign up at www.buildbookbuzz.com.