General FAQs
A book publicist builds visibility and credibility for authors and their books through media outreach. For more than 23 years, the team at PR by the Book has crafted customized campaigns that include writing press materials, pitching to journalists, producers, and podcast hosts, coordinating interviews, securing reviews, and helping authors tell their stories in compelling ways across print, broadcast, and digital outlets.
Book publicity focuses on earned media—coverage you don’t pay for—like interviews, reviews, and feature stories with media and review outlets. Marketing, on the other hand, covers paid and owned media such as ads, email marketing, and social media content. PR builds reputation and credibility, while marketing drives sales directly. Ideally, they work hand-in-hand.
Even the best books won’t sell themselves. A publicist opens doors to media opportunities that authors can’t easily access on their own, helping a book stand out in a crowded marketplace. PR by the Book leverages long-standing relationships and media expertise to amplify an author’s reach and credibility.
For traditionally published and some hybrid published titles, ideally, 4-6 months before publication, which gives us time to develop strategy, prepare press materials, and reach out to long-lead media (like magazines) before launch. For other hybrids and self-published titles, we can start our work 2-3 months prior to release date and focus on short-lead media opportunities. However, we work with books at all stages, including books that have already been published—especially for authors looking to revitalize attention around their title.
Most launch campaigns run between 3 and 6 months, depending on your goals and budget. Many of our authors extend their campaigns to transition into long-term visibility packages that focus on building the author’s platform well after launch.
We work with a wide range of genres—from business, memoir, and self-help to children’s, cookbooks, and fiction. We match each book with a Campaign Manager who has expertise and media connections in that specific category.
Yes. PR by the Book has extensive experience working with all three publishing paths—from Big Five houses to hybrid and indie authors. Our campaigns are flexible and can be tailored to your specific publishing model.
Absolutely. We can build your author platform through thought leadership, media interviews, and social media positioning well before your book comes out, ensuring a strong foundation for your launch.
National publicity targets major media outlets like Good Morning America, The Today Show, The New York Times, or Forbes. Regional campaigns focus on local TV, radio, and newspapers, often tied to where the author lives or has connections and other outlets that might have a niche audience specifically targeted to your potential reader/buyer. Both are valuable. In fact, regional media “proof” is often needed in order to pitch to national media.
Yes. We can promote books in any format—print, digital, or audio—focusing on story, author expertise, and audience appeal rather than the medium.
Service-Specific FAQs
Each campaign includes strategy development, creation of a professional press pack, targeted media outreach, interview coordination, and ongoing campaign management. We provide regular updates and end-of-month reporting.
Yes. In addition to PR, our digital team offers social media content creation and management to help authors grow engagement, build community, and amplify their media coverage.
We don’t currently offer email marketing or newsletter campaign services. Our focus is on securing earned media coverage, interviews, and reviews to help you build credibility and visibility. However, we’re happy to recommend trusted partners who specialize in author email marketing if that’s something you’d like to pursue.
Yes. Every campaign includes professionally written press materials: an Experts Page, a press pack, media pitches, and author Q&A or talking points customized to your goals and target outlets.
Yes. We pitch across all formats—broadcast, print, online, and audio. Our team has a strong record of securing local, regional, and national broadcast placements as well as high-quality podcast interviews.
No ethical PR firm can guarantee placements because editorial decisions are made by journalists and producers. What we do guarantee is consistent, high-quality outreach, transparency, and persistence in pursuing opportunities.
While our focus is on publicity rather than sales, we can collaborate with your publisher or distributor to align PR efforts with retail and library outreach, especially when media coverage can help drive orders
Process & Expectations
We identify outlets that reach your ideal reader/buyer/consumer, whether that’s morning shows, niche podcasts, or trade publications, among others. We tailor each pitch to the outlet’s audience and editorial style for maximum impact.
Plan on spending a few hours each week responding to our interview requests, preparing for media appearances, and sharing coverage on your platforms. The more engaged you are, the better your results will be.
Success can include media placements, interviews, reviews, audience reach, and qualitative impact such as increased credibility, speaking invitations, or stronger author branding. We provide detailed reports to track all coverage.
Yes. All press materials we create are yours to keep and reuse for future books, your website, or additional outreach.
We send monthly email updates summarizing pitching activity, placements, and media interest. You’ll also receive a final wrap-up report at the campaign’s conclusion.
Pricing & Contracts
Our campaigns typically start at around $3,700 per month, depending on scope and duration. We work closely with our clients to ensure their campaign is customized to their needs and provide a proposal with detailed pricing after an initial consultation.
Our standard campaigns run for a minimum of 3–4 months, allowing enough time to build momentum and secure meaningful media coverage. For authors with specific, short-term goals, we also offer month-to-month hourly campaigns focused on limited, targeted pitching. We don’t work on a pay-per-interview or commission basis. Our fees reflect the time, strategy, and expertise invested in every campaign.
Our retainers are nonrefundable due to the significant upfront planning and preparation that go into each campaign. However, we do offer flexibility. You may cancel your contract with a 30-day written notice. We’ll continue to work on your campaign during that notice period and provide a summary of all completed deliverables.
Working With Our Firm
Founded in 2002, PR by the Book combines traditional PR expertise with digital innovation. We’re known for our boutique, relationship-driven approach, personalized campaigns, and long-standing industry credibility. We work overtime to provide results as your promotion partner.
You’ll be matched with a dedicated campaign manager based on your book’s genre and goals. They’ll be your primary point of contact and will collaborate closely with our Director of Publicity to shape your campaign.
Yes. We often collaborate with in-house teams to complement their efforts (and it helps that many of our publicists have spent years working in traditional publishers’ publicity departments). Our goal is to expand your reach—not duplicate work—by targeting additional media opportunities and tailoring outreach beyond what publishers typically cover.
We primarily serve North American-based authors, but can work internationally if the book is in English and relevant to North American media audiences.
Visit our Contact Us page and fill out the form. You’ll receive our Welcome Deck, which includes a link to book a free discovery meeting—the first step in working with us. After the meeting, we’ll create a customized proposal tailored to your book, goals, and timeline.