By Dana Kaye
When I first started Kaye Publicity, there was a temptation to take on any author that was willing to pay me. I was new and I wanted the business to grow, so why would I be so crazy as to turn down a client?
But before I started taking checks from every author that was willing to write one, I realized that being a publicist was much like being a book critic: reputation is everything.
As a critic, I didn’t want the reputation for liking (or hating) every book that came across my desk. It was important to give honest reviews, without bias or influence. I wanted my readers to understand my tastes and trust my opinion.
As a publicist, it is important to establish a reputation for only representing quality books. When I contact book critics, producers, and bloggers, they know the books I’m pitching have been vetted and are well written.
It’s also important for me to establish a reputation for knowing the market and understanding current media. If I pitched every client to Oprah (which every client wants) then I’d jeopardize my contacts because clearly, I don’t know what Oprah wants. However, if every author I pitch is a good fit for the show, I build trust with the producers and they’re more open to hearing my ideas.
The same is true for literary agents: they build a reputation for representing quality work and understanding the market. This goes for editors and publishers as well.
Authors need to establish a reputation for quality writing and storytelling. This may seem obvious, but with so many authors turning to Kindle publishing, I see their reputation being put in jeopardy.
(Yes, it seems I can’t go a week without talking about e-books, so deal)
It’s tempting for established authors to put every unsold novel, novella, or short story up on Kindle to increase both their exposure and revenue. But sometimes, those unsold manuscripts were unsold for a reason. Sometimes there was an issue of plot, character, or the market just wasn’t right. If you want to maintain your reputation of being a talented writer, then it’s imperative that everything you put out into the world is of the highest quality.
I urge all authors, both established and aspiring, to maintain your reputation. You want to be known for quality writing, so don’t publish anything that isn’t your finest work. This goes for querying agents, e-publishing, self-publishing, even posting the first chapter on your website.
Just as repping flawed books can hurt my reputation, publishing flawed books can destroy an author’s.
I wish more writers would figure this out. Bad books can come back to haunt you, or they can trash any hopes of being published by a legitimate publisher.
Bad reviews and, worse, abysmal sales figures can be easily found by publishers and agents.
Also, the ego-stroking of being "published" seems to retard some writers' desire to become proficient in their craft so they never become competent enough to go to the majors.
Posted by: Marilynn Byerly | January 21, 2011 at 01:21 PM