Do you have a plan?

By Dana Kaye

It’s hard to believe that I started Kaye Publicity less two years ago. I’ve worked on 30 campaigns, have 18 active clients, and have obtained close to a hundred reviews/features/interviews, all in 21 months.

And all without a plan.

Most small business owners draw up a detailed business plan, outline their 5 year growth structure, apply for loans, get licenses, jump through hoops and cut through red tape. Me? I just uttered four simple words with confidence.

“I’ll be your publicist.”

Most authors I know are the same way. They write a book and try to sell it. If it sells, they write another. If they get a new offer, they write a new book. They don’t have a 5-year plan unless they have a 5-book contract.

But as the girlfriend of an accountant, I know that I should learn from other small business owners, so this month’s project has been coming up with a 5-year growth plan. I’d paste it here, but that would just bore you to tears. Instead, here are some questions authors can ask themselves to figure out where they are and where they want to be:

What is your current standing as an author?

• How many books have you published this year?
• How many books did you sell?
• What foreign rights have you sold?
• How many speaking engagements did you book?
• How many media appearances did you have? How many reviews?
• What did you earn from writing this year?

Where do you want to be this time next year?

• How many books do you want to publish?
• How many books do you want to sell?
• Do you want to sell to foreign markets?
• What about film rights?
• Do you want to book paid speaking engagements? Land the keynote spot at a book festival?
• Do you want to land a feature in your paper? Have your first TV interview?

Where do you want to be in five years?

• Do you want to publish more books per year?
• Do you want to break into a new genre? Write a new series?
• Do you want to do an extensive book tour?
• Do you want a series of TV or radio interviews?
• Do you want to double your sales? Land a spot on a bestseller list? Earn an award nomination?

Once you’ve answered these questions, then strategize with your agent and/or publicist and figure out what needs to be done to make those things happen. Sometimes, in order to accomplish your 5-year goals, you have to put things in motion now.

Comments

[Alison Janssen]

I think what Dana's really trying to get at here is if you are a Cylon, you need to have a plan. If you are a human, frak the plan but be prepared to be chased endlessly across the cosmos in a fleet of ever-dwindling old ships.

[Robin Agnew]

When we opened Aunt Agatha's we didn't have a plan either. We had a few bucks, we liked books and I loved mysteries, and we were set. It's like having kids - if you thought about it first with any clarity, you probably wouldn't have them. But then you miss out on unexpected benefits.