Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinisajoy
Here is another question or two for you.
How many authors do the Big 5 publish every year?
How many of those authors are heavily marketed?
Hint: they only promote those that are already lining the publisher's pocket.
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Obviously, it varies quite a bit. Most authors have book signing tours. That's marketing. Most publishers use to pay for the positioning of books in the book store. That's marketing. Many publishers line up interviews on radio talk shows. That's marketing. The bigger authors get the bigger stage, spots on afternoon TV talk shows and the like. I ran across an interview of David McCullough right after the Wright Brothers biography came out on the Stuff You Missed in History Class podcast, that's marketing (effective too, I bought the book because of it). I've seen a number of political authors on various Sunday morning political shows. That's marketing.
Most get some form of marketing, though obviously, how much marketing and what form can vary quite a bit. Tor puts out a weekly email newsletter to anyone who signs up. So all their authors get marketing. Some new authors who haven't sold a book get pretty big marketing if the publisher thinks that it's a potential best seller. I remember when the first Wheel of Time book came out to a pretty big marketing campaign.
Of course, a secondary point is how does an indie get even the lowest level of marketing, i.e. book signing tour and book placement? Answer, for the most part, they can't. They just don't have the contacts to put it together, nor do they have the up front cash to pay for book placement. Book placement (and good cover art) can make a big difference in book sales.