Weekly Blog - 2nd June
Last week, I journeyed down to London to meet Louise Swannell of MIDAS P.R. Louise is the account director charged with publicising my debut novel, Justice For All, and I’m happy to report that my book looks to be in very capable hands. I met Louise in a coffee shop close to the theatre district, where she gave a quick dummy’s guide to the art of publicity, with me playing the role of the dummy. She then went on to quiz me about my writing, my background, my inside leg measurement, etc, as she searched for angles about me that might interest the U.K.’s media tycoons.
Publicity is the lifeblood of any new author, as no one’s going to buy that debut novel you’ve been slaving away on for years if they’re not even aware of its existence. Trouble is, the competition to get a book review or personal interview is staggeringly fierce, and that’s where people like Louise come in. Having shown me the lengthy list of people that she’s already sent an advance copy of the novel to, she went on to explain how from this point forth she’ll be badgering them at every opportunity until they a) read it; b) fall in love with it; and c) agree to help spread the word. I in turn shall be doing everything that I can to make her task easier – I think my first task is to befriend some A-list celebs at the earliest opportunity!
But while garnering publicity from the UK’s media outlets is vital, so too is that most invaluable of commodities – word of mouth – and that’s where you come in. One person tells another, they tell another, and pretty soon the word starts to spread like tiny ripples across a vast lake. If you could see your way clear to mention me, my book, and my website to anyone you know (and anyone you don’t!) then I’d be eternally grateful. And please feel free to join me on Facebook and MySpace where I’d be more than happy to add you as a friend – the viral marketing campaign starts here!
But as anyone who read last week’s blog will be aware, I didn’t travel to London solely to discuss the publicity needs of Justice For All. No sir. I went up the day before with my wife, Lisa, and my pet monkey, Daz (he’s not really a monkey – he’s more of a missing evolutionary link) to see the legend that is Bob Mould, former Husker Du and Sugar frontman and now a critically acclaimed solo artist. Bob was playing live at Koko’s in Camden, and this was to be only the third time in my life that I’d see one of my all-time rock music heroes.
We arrived mid afternoon to take up residency in Dingwalls at Camden Lock, then spent the next few hours soaking up both the warm summer sun and a fair few beverages of an alcoholic persuasion. Once we’d checked to make sure that we still had the use of our legs, we stumbled down to Koko’s just before nine p.m., our number at this point swollen by one, as we’d be joined by Damon, an old school friend of ours (there – I’ve mentioned everyone that was present – the things you have to do to keep people happy…)
It was the first time I’d been to the venue, and boy, was it stunning – a nineteenth century old-style theatre like building with three (or maybe four?) levels encapsulated by ornately decorated balconies, having hosted such diverse luminaries as Charlie Chaplin, The Sex Pistols, and Madonna throughout it’s 100-year existence. Bob came on and proceeded to drown the interior in a sea of white-hot guitar, the melodies pummelling their way into the crowd’s subconscious like a cruiserweight on steroids. Tracks from each era of his lengthy songbook were included, with those from Sugar’s 1992 classic album, Copper Blue, sending yours truly into raptures. Two hours later the curtain came down, and we exited into the night air to find that we all had a good dose of tinnitus.
After seeing first Public Enemy and then Bob Mould within a few days of each other, I’ve really been on a musical high, and next week I get to complete the trifecta, as I’m off to see the Foo Fighters at Wembley Stadium! Before that, I’ve got a couple of local gigs to attend – up and coming Welsh rockers Kids in Glass Houses followed by Scouse soul revivalists the Zutons. In between all this revelry, I’ll be working through some revision notes on the follow-up to Justice For All…promise!
Cheers,
Steve
Publicity is the lifeblood of any new author, as no one’s going to buy that debut novel you’ve been slaving away on for years if they’re not even aware of its existence. Trouble is, the competition to get a book review or personal interview is staggeringly fierce, and that’s where people like Louise come in. Having shown me the lengthy list of people that she’s already sent an advance copy of the novel to, she went on to explain how from this point forth she’ll be badgering them at every opportunity until they a) read it; b) fall in love with it; and c) agree to help spread the word. I in turn shall be doing everything that I can to make her task easier – I think my first task is to befriend some A-list celebs at the earliest opportunity!
But while garnering publicity from the UK’s media outlets is vital, so too is that most invaluable of commodities – word of mouth – and that’s where you come in. One person tells another, they tell another, and pretty soon the word starts to spread like tiny ripples across a vast lake. If you could see your way clear to mention me, my book, and my website to anyone you know (and anyone you don’t!) then I’d be eternally grateful. And please feel free to join me on Facebook and MySpace where I’d be more than happy to add you as a friend – the viral marketing campaign starts here!
But as anyone who read last week’s blog will be aware, I didn’t travel to London solely to discuss the publicity needs of Justice For All. No sir. I went up the day before with my wife, Lisa, and my pet monkey, Daz (he’s not really a monkey – he’s more of a missing evolutionary link) to see the legend that is Bob Mould, former Husker Du and Sugar frontman and now a critically acclaimed solo artist. Bob was playing live at Koko’s in Camden, and this was to be only the third time in my life that I’d see one of my all-time rock music heroes.
We arrived mid afternoon to take up residency in Dingwalls at Camden Lock, then spent the next few hours soaking up both the warm summer sun and a fair few beverages of an alcoholic persuasion. Once we’d checked to make sure that we still had the use of our legs, we stumbled down to Koko’s just before nine p.m., our number at this point swollen by one, as we’d be joined by Damon, an old school friend of ours (there – I’ve mentioned everyone that was present – the things you have to do to keep people happy…)
It was the first time I’d been to the venue, and boy, was it stunning – a nineteenth century old-style theatre like building with three (or maybe four?) levels encapsulated by ornately decorated balconies, having hosted such diverse luminaries as Charlie Chaplin, The Sex Pistols, and Madonna throughout it’s 100-year existence. Bob came on and proceeded to drown the interior in a sea of white-hot guitar, the melodies pummelling their way into the crowd’s subconscious like a cruiserweight on steroids. Tracks from each era of his lengthy songbook were included, with those from Sugar’s 1992 classic album, Copper Blue, sending yours truly into raptures. Two hours later the curtain came down, and we exited into the night air to find that we all had a good dose of tinnitus.
After seeing first Public Enemy and then Bob Mould within a few days of each other, I’ve really been on a musical high, and next week I get to complete the trifecta, as I’m off to see the Foo Fighters at Wembley Stadium! Before that, I’ve got a couple of local gigs to attend – up and coming Welsh rockers Kids in Glass Houses followed by Scouse soul revivalists the Zutons. In between all this revelry, I’ll be working through some revision notes on the follow-up to Justice For All…promise!
Cheers,
Steve
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