Guerrilla Marketing for Writers : 100 Weapons to Help You Sell Your Work (Paperback)

by Jay Conrad Levinson (Author), Rick Frishman (Author), Michael Larsen (Author) "The United States is in the midst of an entrepreneurial explosion, one of the most hopeful signs for the country's future..." (more)
Key Phrases: New York, Publishers Weekly, San Francisco (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
There are writers who would be horrified at the tactics laid out in Guerrilla Marketing for Writers, perhaps because marketing oneself as one might a commodity is at odds with the artistic temperament. Alas, those writers are unlikely to find themselves at the helm of such publishing fleets as the Chicken Soup or, well, Guerrilla Marketing series.

HarperCollins publishes 1,200 books a year, according to the authors of Guerrilla Marketing for Writers. Is there a snowball's chance in hell that their publicity department can adequately promote all of them? Of course not. Don't let someone else's publicity department drop the ball when it comes to your book. Guerrilla Marketing's 100 weapons for selling your work range from creating media kits and promotional calendars to appearing at book-group discussions and fundraisers. Each "weapon" is rated by its monetary cost to the author, and well over half are free. While the authors advise that this book will help in the promotion of "any kind of book, from poetry to textbooks," most of its tactics seem best suited to nonfiction. The authors' overarching philosophy? Think like an entrepreneur. "Don't think like a writer who has something to say; think like an author who has a lifetime of books, products, and services to sell." --Jane Steinberg

Review
"Fortunately there is a Guerrilla Marketing book for the writer. Enlist now and requisition your weapons. Don't go into the publishing jungle unarmed." -- Dan Poynter, author of THE SELF-PUBLISHING MANUAL

"This book teaches the marketing tools every writer needs to know today." -- John Gray, Author of MEN ARE FROM MARS, WOMEN ARE FROM VENUS

"Writers create babies called books and then orphan them. Read this book and make your book a bestseller ... and that's the right idea!" -- Mark Victor Hansen

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Writers Digest Books (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 089879983X
• ISBN-13: 978-0898799835
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #227,620 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required reading for authors, January 2, 2001

By	Roger C. Parker (Dover, NH) - See all my reviews

As the author of 24 books which enjoy a worldwide circulation in excess of a million and a half copies and whose books have been translated into 37 languages, I recommend Guerilla Marketing for Writers to any author who aspires to success. <P)

If this book had existed twelve years ago, my income would be several times what it is today. I would have avoided numerous expensive mistakes because I would have more realistic expectations of who should do what in publishing. Guerilla Marketing for Writers presents an insider's view of what really goes on in publishing and outlines over one hundred specific, affordable and practical ways authors can promote their book and leverage of its success.

Guerilla Marketing for Writers presents a doable tutorial that will help every author who adopts even just a few of its ideas. It's message won't be appreciated by those who feel "marketing should be left for publishers" but will be appreciated by authors who respect their work enough to want to promote their book to its maximum potential. Just one of the ideas in this book can lead to a more profitable future. For over twenty years, Jay Conrad Levinson has been helping small businesses in general promote themselves to greater success. Now, authors can benefit from his and his co-author's wisdom adapted to their specific needs. If you want to write a book, begin by reading this book (as well as Michael Larsen's How To Write a Book Proposal).

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars You've been guerillaed., August 1, 2006

By	William P. Davis "Patrick" (Toledo, Ohio) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The introduction pretty well sums up the fatal flaw in this book: "But [this book] isn't a how-to book, it's a what-to book."

You have to ask: How much good is knowing what to do if you don't know how to do it? Go rebuild the engine in your car. I told you what to do; you will have to find out how to do it somewhere else. Save yourself the trouble and go somewhere else to begin with.

I bought this book to learn how to market my novels. I get: "In this respect [promotion] novelists are luckier than nonfiction writers. Not much is expected from them in the way of promotion.(page 87)" How much less? None? A little bit? Which ones of the 100 "weapons" should I use? Though I forced myself through the rest of the book and its interminably boring lists, I never found the answer.

I will have to say the authors practise what they preach. I would bet they have used all the gorilla (my spelling) weapons in this book, and then some, to sell every copy they can; including, I suspect, many of the glowing reviews on this page from members of their "network." You push my book and I will push yours.

It is a shame that American literature has come down to who is the best marketer. Maybe that is why many new novels, which used to keep me glued to my seat, now get slammed shut after the first few chapters. Maybe the next one will be better.

This book is cotton candy: real yummy but no substance: sugar air. The best part is the money-back guarantee, which the authors proudly proclaim, is a safe bet because most people won't take you up on it.

I have to give it some credit for the appendixes. Of course, you could get the same thing with a few simple internet searches, but I hate to be all negative.

If you buy this book, you may find yourself saying: "I've been guerillaed."

41 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Whether You Sell out to a Publisher . . ., June 17, 2001

By	Dan Poynter "Author-Publisher-Speaker" (Santa Barbara, CA United States) - See all my reviews

or publish yourself, the author must do the Promotion. It is a sad
fact of publishing life: publishers do not promote books. They only
produce them and place them in bookstores. Fortunately, now there is a
Guerrilla Marketing book for those who need it the most-the
writer.

These three marketing geniuses help you assess your
strengths, arm you with the tools you will need, show you how to
promote your book and generously share their years of experience
marketing books. This book is brimming with every conceivable book
marketing and promotion idea. Some are expensive and some are
free. Some are hard and some are easy. Some require you to personally
flog your own book and some are remote and anonymous. Enlist now and
requisition your weapons. Don't go into the publishing jungle
unarmed.

As a publisher and an author of 113 books (including
revisions and foreign-language editions) and over 500 magazine
articles, I highly recommend this book to both authors and publishers.