Today, Norm Goldman Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com is pleased to have as our guest Sara Dobie Public Relations Coordinator for Sylvan Dell Publishing. Sara also has her own blog and she has been featured on several blogs and Internet sites including ForeWord Publishing Inside blog, SellingBooks.com, and AllBookMarketing.com.

Good day Sara and thanks for participating in our interview

Norm:

Can you tell our readers more about being a Public Relations Coordinator of Sylvan Dell Publishing?  How did you get this job and what does it entail? Were you always interested in public relations? 

Sara:

Two years ago, I was working in Ohio as a freelance publicist for a number of Midwestern authors and illustrators. Working on your own can take its toll (WAY too much alone time!), and after a year of working as an independent, I decided I wanted a change. Fatefully, the Sylvan Dell position opened up, and I jumped at the chance to work for such a positive and enthusiastic picture book publishing house. I was offered the position, and I relocated from Ohio to Charleston, SC. Needless to say, the weather is a bit better down here, and the beach doesn’t hurt.

My job at Sylvan Dell as a Public Relations Coordinator entails a lot of writing and media “stalking.” I say “stalking” because as a publicist, you gotta stay on people until they give you the story. And they DO, as long as you never give up. On a daily basis, I manage up to 64 clients, including all their emails queries and event coverage. I write press releases and dozens upon dozens of emails every day. I manage award submission. I keep the website up to date, and I keep an eye on “Sylvan Dell” via Google Alerts. Public Relations is an ever-changing, ever-evolving career, and there is never a dull moment.

In a way, yes, I’ve always been interested in PR; I just didn’t realize my interest had a name until three years ago, when I first started marketing children’s books to a national audience. I have always been a writer. I have always been a people-person, and yeah, I occasionally come off as a smooth operator. Therefore, before I was doing PR as a career, I was doing PR in life. I’m just lucky to have equated my life passion into a job I love, working with authors and illustrators I admire and respect.

Norm:

In the last few years or so what have been the changes in the way publishers publish, market and distribute books? Are there any emerging trends developing?

 Sara:

Goodness YES, there have been changes in the last few years.

In the way we publish: eBooks are all the rage. No, I don’t think they’ll ever replace all hardcover/paperbacks, but they are a new trend that is growing exponentially.

In the way we market: The web is HUGE. Newspapers are, sadly, on the way out. Now, publishers have to know the top publishing websites and book critics. We have to know the bloggers. We need to keep an eye on Facebook and Twitter. In a way, this is awesome, because it’s so cheap to get free press. (For instance, during a Sylvan Dell PR blitz two weeks ago, http://saradobie.wordpress.com/2009/07/29/hail-to-the-sylvan-dell-revolution/, all I had to do was send an email, and we were on six blogs within the space of an hour. A bit different than the days of Steinbeck and Thoreau, huh?)

In the way we distribute: It’s back to the eBooks. I have reviewers now who review books in eBook format. We sell eBook formats by the dozen with every new release. Talk about CHEAP distribution!

Norm:

How do you and your staff go about deciding which blogs or Internet sites you would want a review of your publishing house’s books to be posted?

Sara:

We do our homework. Sylvan Dell Publishing has an incredible niche in the educational picture book community. Therefore, I’ve spent hours researching education websites, teacher association sites, and homeschool blogs. Then, when I’ve compiled a list of sites I like, I do MORE homework. How many hits do the sites have a month? Does the site have a strong following? If the site has been around since 2006, and it has only 200 hits, I move on. It’s not that I don’t want the WHOLE WORLD to know about Sylvan Dell Publishing; it’s just that there are so many sites out there, and there’s only so much time to spend focused on them. I get together my targeted list, and I build a rapport. I send a cheerful, informative introductory email, and we move on from there. I start a business relationship, because the more good hype we get, the more books we’ll sell. And that’s how we survive, right?

Norm:

Suppose I were an author of a children’s book dealing with some environmental issue. What would be the most important elements I should consider when marketing my book?

Sara:

1. Are you donating any of your proceeds to an environmental non-profit? If you are, what can they do to publicize your new release?

2. Are things happening in the news that specifically relate to your book? Make that link in all your emails/cover letters/websites. By piggy-backing off a newsworthy environmental event, make your book newsworthy, too.

3. Are there organizations that support your book’s environmental issue? For example, if you’re writing about wetlands, who’s working to conserve wetlands? Make friends with organizations with a common cause, and pitch them with cross-promotion opportunities.

Norm:

How many books per year does Sylvan Dell Publishing publish per year? As a follow up, is there any particular genre that is more popular than the rest?

Sara:

Sylvan Dell publishes 10 books per year. Our mission statement is “science and math through literature,” so all our titles are educational and artistically stunning. The popularity of each title varies, depending on the season, awards won, and how hard the author works to book events, school visits, and speaking engagements. Any genre can be popular; it all depends on how much work the author/publicist/agent puts into it. 

Norm:

I noticed you are a writer with your own blog. Could you tell us more about your blog and how much time do you devote to it? 

Sara:

My blog grew out of business necessity. Early this year, I realized not only am I a publicist, but I’m a writer, so I needed to be WRITING. Plus I wanted to develop a serious web presence. So I brainstormed. I started a blog focused on public relations, writing, and Charleston, SC. Since then, I’ve developed a wonderful and supportive following. My blog is up to about 80 hits a day, and my writing has matured and improved already. A wonderful experience! I post about three times a week, and each post takes about a half hour. However, I have used my blog for a sounding board for my writing, as well. I’ve tested my ability and set short story deadline, where I post a segment a day over the course of a week and request comments/suggestions from my readership. At the end of the week, I have a complete, critiqued short story. I’m starting one this week, in fact, so feel free to drop by the blog and give me your writing advice!

Norm:

As a follow up, how important is it for an author to have his or her own sites and/or blog?

Sara:

It’s imperative. I yell at my clients if they don’t have a website at least, although blogs are HUGE in the literary market, so authors should really have a website and a blog. Websites are windows into an author’s real life. Fans like reading about authors. They like getting to know the person writing the books they love, so it’s really for the fans. Plus, a website makes it easy to get tons of info about you all in one place. For instance, you should have ordering info on your site. You should have biographical info. You should have links to school visit/presentation information. Contact info. You get the idea. It’s just so helpful—for media and for bookstores—when important info about you is up and easy to find. A blog is great because it keep your fans informed. You can tell them about upcoming events. What are you working on? When’s your next release hitting shelves? Again, it’s a way to be close to your fan base AND the media, so yes, please have a website!!!

Norm:

Lately there has been a great deal of “buzz” about virtual book tours. What is this all about and how do you go about setting up an effective virtual book tour?

Sara: 

This is a multi-faceted question.

In one sense, virtual book tours are tours that involve no travel. Basically, if you really wanted, you could do a virtual book tour in your pyjamas. Using a program like Skype, you can appear at schools and bookstores without actually being at the event location. I have a blog post about this good stuff: http://saradobie.wordpress.com/2009/07/23/    the-skype-effect-by-publicist-bonnie-harris/.

In another sense, virtual tours involve “travelling” from blog to blog. Right before/during your book release, you should schedule to do interviews with certain blogs on certain days in a week-long cluster. Part of this is having them review your book on certain days, too. Again, no travel. You exist on the world wide web, but don’t let that scare you—as I’ve already said, the WWW is where it’s AT nowadays.

Norm:

How do our readers find out more about you and your publishing house? r

Sara:

Find out more about me on my blog: http://saradobie.wordpress.com.

Find out more about Sylvan Dell Publishing at our company website: http://www.SylvanDellPublishing.com.

Norm:

Is there anything else you wish to add that we have not covered and what is next for Sara Dobie? 

Sara:

I finished my most recent novel in January of this year after a mere four months. (Amazing what emotional upheaval does to an artist.) It’s entitled SNM. The synopsis:

There’s revenge. Then, there’s really fun revenge. Just ask Susan Welsh. After breaking up with a virginity-stealing, cheating piece of human waste, Susan initiates a social experiment with her two best friends. In an effort to escape future heartbreak, the three women impart on six months of no dating, no phone numbers, and no commitment—just sex, drugs, rock-and-roll. They become the Saturday Night Manhunters, begging the question “Is it possible to prevent a broken heart?”

I’m currently in the heavy duty editing stages, but once that’s done, I’ll start shopping agents and publishers. Like I said, I’m a publicist, but I’m a writer, too, and I hope that one day I can use all I’ve learned as Sara Dobie, Public Relations Coordinator, and apply my promotional skills to Sara Dobie, Author. Thanks for reading! If you have any questions, be sure to send an email my way: SaraDobie@SylvanDellPublishing.com

Thanks once again and good luck with all of your future endeavours.